Greg Abbott, the Republican governor of Texas, signed three bills into law on Tuesday that aim to protect Texas against foreign adversaries, including Russia, China and Iran.
“Hostile foreign adversaries like China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, as well as foreign terrorist organizations like Tren de Aragua, must not be allowed to own land in Texas,” Abbott said. “They should not be allowed access to our critical infrastructure, and they may not be allowed to exploit our border.
“Stiff, criminal penalties will be inflicted on those who violate these laws,” he stated.
The three bills focus on relationships between the state and foreign nations. The one House bill signed into law prevents Texas from establishing a “sister-city” relationship with countries labeled as foreign adversaries and calls for the state to terminate existing relationships with countries under this label.
The first of the two Senate bills signed prohibits entities and individuals from adversarial nations and organizations from purchasing real estate in Texas, while also criminalizing the sale of land to such persons. The second Senate bill calls for the state to “develop practices for preventing, reporting and responding to transnational repression.”
