Libya Stabilization Act

IIB 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1228 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES SEPTEMBER 29, 2021 Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations AN ACT To advance a diplomatic solution to the conflict in Libya and support the people of Libya. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:39 Sep 30, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1228.RFS H1228 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 HR 1228 RFS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 1 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 2 ‘‘Libya Stabilization Act’’. 3 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 4 this Act is as follows: 5 Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. Sec. 2. Findings; statement of policy. TITLE I—IDENTIFYING CHALLENGES TO STABILITY IN LIBYA Sec. 101. Report on activities of certain foreign governments and actors in Libya. Sec. 102. Report of Russian activities and objectives in Libya. Sec. 103. Determination of sanctionable activities of the Libyan National Army with respect to Syria. TITLE II—ACTIONS TO ADDRESS FOREIGN INTERVENTION IN LIBYA Sec. 201. Sanctions with respect to foreign persons leading, directing, or sup- porting certain foreign government involvement in Libya. Sec. 202. Sanctions with respect to foreign persons threatening the peace or stability of Libya. Sec. 203. Sanctions with respect to foreign persons who are responsible for or complicit in gross violations of internationally recognized human rights committed in Libya. Sec. 204. Sanctions described. Sec. 205. Waiver. Sec. 206. Implementation and regulatory authority. Sec. 207. Exception relating to importation of goods. Sec. 208. Definitions. Sec. 209. Suspension of sanctions. Sec. 210. Sunset. TITLE III—ASSISTANCE FOR LIBYA Sec. 301. Humanitarian relief for the people of Libya and international refu- gees and migrants in Libya. Sec. 302. Support for democratic governance, elections, and civil society. Sec. 303. Engaging international financial institutions to advance Libyan eco- nomic recovery and improve public sector financial manage- ment. Sec. 304. Recovering assets stolen from the Libyan people. Sec. 305. Authority to expand educational and cultural exchange programs with Libya. TITLE IV—DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS Sec. 401. Determination of budgetary effects. VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:39 Sep 30, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H1228.RFS H1228 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 HR 1228 RFS SEC. 2. FINDINGS; STATEMENT OF POLICY. 1 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find- 2 ings: 3 (1) The stability and territorial unity of Libya 4 is critical to the security of the United States, Eu- 5 rope, North Africa, and the Sahel, as well as mari- 6 time routes in the southern Mediterranean Sea. 7 (2) United States Africa Command 8 (AFRICOM) has identified containing instability in 9 Libya as one of its six main lines of effort in Africa 10 and works to support diplomatic efforts to reconsti- 11 tute the Libyan State and to disrupt terrorist orga- 12 nizations that impede that process or threaten 13 United States interests. 14 (3) According to the Defense Intelligence Agen- 15 cy, the Islamic State in Libya (ISIS-Libya) is ‘‘de- 16 graded’’. However, AFRICOM continues to ‘‘keep 17 pressure on ISIS and other violent extremist organi- 18 zations as they seek to take advantage of the secu- 19 rity vacuum created by the civil war in Libya’’. 20 (4) According to the United Nations, since 21 April 2019, the conflict in Libya has led to the 22 deaths of more than 500 civilians and the displace- 23 ment of more than 200,000 people. 24 (5) Parties to the conflict in Libya have killed 25 civilians, committed torture and abuse, committed 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:39 Sep 30, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1228.RFS H1228 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 HR 1228 RFS mass extrajudicial killings, requisitioned the houses 1 of civilians, targeted medical facilities, and blocked 2 humanitarian access to food, health, and other life- 3 saving services, worsening humanitarian conditions. 4 (6) According to the United Nations, as of No- 5 vember 2020, more than 574,000 migrants and refu- 6 gees remained in Libya and the ‘‘continued arbitrary 7 detention of migrants and refugees in formal deten- 8 tion centers and at informal smuggler sites remains 9 a critical concern in Libya’’. Migrants and refugees, 10 including women and children, are routinely sub- 11 jected to discrimination, arrest, arbitrary detention, 12 torture and other human rights violations and 13 abuses. The United Nations has called for the imme- 14 diate release, evacuation, and protection of refugees 15 and migrants detained in conflict zones. 16 (7) In November 2019, the Government of the 17 National Accord (GNA) and the Government of Tur- 18 key signed a Memorandum of Understanding on 19 maritime boundaries in the Mediterranean Sea. 20 (8) The Department of State’s 2020 Traf- 21 ficking in Persons Report states with regard to 22 Libya ‘‘Trafficking victims—including men, women, 23 and children—are highly vulnerable to extreme vio- 24 lence and other human rights violations in Libya by 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:39 Sep 30, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1228.RFS H1228 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 HR 1228 RFS governmental and non-state armed groups, includ- 1 ing: physical, sexual, and verbal assault; abduction 2 for ransom; extortion; arbitrary killings; inhumane 3 detention; and child soldiering. . ..Migrants in 4 Libya are extremely vulnerable to sex and labor traf- 5 ficking [and . . .] are vulnerable to exploitation by 6 state and non-state actors, including employers who 7 refuse to pay laborers’ wages.’’. 8 (9) A November 2020 Department of Defense 9 Inspector General report estimated there are ap- 10 proximately 2,000 mercenary forces affiliated with 11 the Wagner Group, a Russian private military com- 12 pany, as well as approximately 2,000 Russian- 13 backed Syrian fighters, advanced equipment, and ad- 14 vanced capabilities supporting Khalifa Haftar’s Lib- 15 yan National Army (LNA) and Russian objectives in 16 North Africa. 17 (10) The most recent AFRICOM posture state- 18 ment claims, ‘‘Russia continues to harvest benefits 19 from the instability in Libya—its military meddling 20 has prolonged the conflict and exacerbated casualties 21 and humanitarian suffering.’’. 22 (11) The Department of Defense Inspector 23 General reported that, ‘‘Turkey has hundreds of reg- 24 ular military personnel deployed to Libya in order to 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:39 Sep 30, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1228.RFS H1228 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 HR 1228 RFS train GNA-aligned militias and to operate Turkish 1 military equipment’’ and sent thousands of Syrian 2 mercenaries to Libya in support of the GNA. 3 (12) On January 19, 2020, at a peace con- 4 ference in Berlin, representatives of the Govern- 5 ments of Algeria, China, Egypt, France, Germany, 6 Italy, Russia, Turkey, the Republic of Congo, the 7 United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and 8 the United States, as well as regional and multilat- 9 eral organizations, agreed to refrain from inter- 10 ference in Libya’s internal affairs, abide by the 11 United Nations arms embargo, and advance a 55- 12 point communique to resolve the conflict in Libya. 13 (13) On February 13, 2020, the United Na- 14 tions Security Council adopted Resolution 2510, 15 which endorses the Conclusions of the International 16 Conference on Libya held in Berlin, affirms the need 17 for a lasting ceasefire, demands full compliance by 18 all member states with the United Nations arms em- 19 bargo, and expresses unequivocal support for the 20 United Nations Special Representative and the ongo- 21 ing United Nations Support Mission in Libya 22 (UNSMIL)-facilitated intra-Libyan dialogue. 23 (14) On October 23, 2020, the warring parties 24 in Libya agreed a ceasefire, which called for the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:39 Sep 30, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1228.RFS H1228 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 HR 1228 RFS withdrawal of all armed forces from conflict lines 1 and the departure of all mercenaries and foreign 2 fighters within three months, and was hailed by 3 United Nations Secretary General Anto´nio Guterres 4 as ‘‘a fundamental step toward peace and stability 5 in Libya’’. 6 (15) On January 19, 2021, United Nations 7 Secretary General Guterres recommended that re- 8 gional and international powers ensure the ‘‘depar- 9 ture of all foreign fighters and mercenaries from 10 Libya and full and unconditional respect for the Se- 11 curity Council arms embargo’’ and urged the Secu- 12 rity Council to ‘‘give UNSMIL a clear but flexible 13 mandate to enable the Mission to support the Liby- 14 an-led and Libyan-owned ceasefire monitoring mech- 15 anism’’. 16 (16) On January 21, 2021, the United States 17 joined the Governments of France, Germany, Italy, 18 and the United Kingdom to remind all Berlin Con- 19 ference participants of the need to ‘‘continue to sup- 20 port a ceasefire, restore full respect for the UN arms 21 embargo, and end the toxic foreign interference that 22 undermines the aspirations of all Libyans to reestab- 23 lish their sovereignty and choose their future peace- 24 fully through national elections’’. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:39 Sep 30, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1228.RFS H1228 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 HR 1228 RFS (17) On March 11, 2021, the United States 1 joined with France, Germany, Italy, and the United 2 Kingdom to welcome Libya’s Government of Na- 3 tional Unity and reiterate it will ‘‘have the primary 4 tasks of organizing free and fair elections on Decem- 5 ber 24, 2021, followed by a transfer of authority to 6 Libya’s democratically chosen leaders’’. 7 (b) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—It is the policy of the 8 United States— 9 (1) to advance a peaceful resolution to the con- 10 flict in Libya through a United Nations-mediated 11 Libyan-led and Libyan-owned political process as the 12 best way to secure United States interests and to 13 ensure the sovereignty, independence, territorial in- 14 tegrity, and national unity of Libya; 15 (2) to support the implementation of United 16 Nations Security Council Resolutions 1970 (2011) 17 and 1973 (2011), which established an arms embar- 18 go on Libya, and subsequent resolutions modifying 19 and extending the embargo; 20 (3) to enforce Executive Order 13726 (81 Fed. 21 Reg. 23559; relating to blocking property and sus- 22 pending entry into the United States of persons con- 23 tributing to the situation in Libya (April 19, 2016)), 24 designed to target individuals or entities who 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:39 Sep 30, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1228.RFS H1228 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 HR 1228 RFS ‘‘threaten the peace, security, and stability of 1 Libya’’; 2 (4) to oppose attacks on civilians, medical work- 3 ers, and critical infrastructure, including water sup- 4 plies, in Libya, and to support accountability for 5 those engaged in such heinous actions; 6 (5) to support Libya’s sovereignty, independ- 7 ence, territorial integrity, and national unity con- 8 sistent with United Nations Security Council Resolu- 9 tion 2510 (2020) and all predecessor resolutions 10 with respect to Libya, including by— 11 (A) taking action to end the violence and 12 flow of arms; 13 (B) rejecting attempts by any party to il- 14 licitly export Libya’s oil; and 15 (C) urging the withdrawal of foreign mili- 16 tary and mercenary forces; 17 (6) to leverage diplomatic relations to convince 18 the parties to the conflict in Libya to maintain the 19 current ceasefire and persuade foreign powers to 20 stop providing personnel, including mercenaries, 21 weapons, and financing that threaten to reignite the 22 conflict; 23 (7) to support the Libyan Political Dialogue 24 and advance the inclusive Libyan-led and Libyan- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:39 Sep 30, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1228.RFS H1228 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 HR 1228 RFS owned political process, including elections planned 1 for December 2021; 2 (8) to support a negotiated and peaceful polit- 3 ical solution that includes a single, unified, inclusive, 4 and effective Libyan Government approved by the 5 Libyan House of Representatives, the end of a tran- 6 sitional period achieved through free, fair, inclusive, 7 and credible elections planned for December 2021, a 8 fair and transparent allocation of resources, interim 9 security arrangements, and a process for the reunifi- 10 cation of Libyan government ministries and Libyan 11 sovereign institutions, including the Central Bank of 12 Libya, the National Oil Corporation, and the Libyan 13 Investment Authority; 14 (9) to help protect Libya’s civilian population 15 and implementing humanitarian and international 16 organizations from the risk of harm resulting from 17 explosive hazards such as landmines, improvised ex- 18 plosive devices (IEDs), and unexploded ordnance 19 (UXO); 20 (10) to support constant, unimpeded, and reli- 21 able humanitarian access to those in need and to 22 hold accountable those who impede or threaten the 23 delivery of humanitarian assistance; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:39 Sep 30, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1228.RFS H1228 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 HR 1228 RFS (11) to seek to bring an end to severe forms of 1 trafficking in persons such as slavery, forced labor, 2 and sexual exploitation, including with respect to mi- 3 grants; 4 (12) to advocate for the immediate release and 5 safe evacuations of detained refugees and migrants 6 trapped by the fighting in Libya; 7 (13) to encourage implementation of 8 UNSMIL’s plan for the organized and gradual clo- 9 sure of migrant detention centers in Libya; 10 (14) to support greater defense institutional ca- 11 pacity building after a comprehensive political settle- 12 ment; 13 (15) to support current and future democratic 14 and economic development; and 15 (16) to discourage all parties from heightening 16 tensions in the region, through unhelpful and pro- 17 vocative actions. 18 TITLE I—IDENTIFYING CHAL- 19 LENGES TO STABILITY IN 20 LIBYA 21 SEC. 101. REPORT ON ACTIVITIES OF CERTAIN FOREIGN 22 GOVERNMENTS AND ACTORS IN LIBYA. 23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 24 date of the enactment [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]