Ensuring a Secure Afghanistan Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2060 To provide oversight over talks between the United States and the Taliban, limit the use of funds to reduce the total number of members of the Armed Forces serving on active duty who are deployed to Afghanistan until certain conditions on the ground are fulfilled, and for other pur- poses. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 3, 2019 Mr. BANKS (for himself, Ms. CHENEY, Ms. STEFANIK, and Mr. WALTZ) intro- duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services, and in addition to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, for a pe- riod to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for con- sideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the com- mittee concerned A BILL To provide oversight over talks between the United States and the Taliban, limit the use of funds to reduce the total number of members of the Armed Forces serving on active duty who are deployed to Afghanistan until certain conditions on the ground are fulfilled, and for other purposes. 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 21:31 Apr 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2060.IH H2060 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2060 IH SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ensuring a Secure Af- 2 ghanistan Act’’. 3 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 4 Congress finds the following: 5 (1) A premature withdrawal of United States 6 Armed Forces from Afghanistan would result in in- 7 creased instability, violence, and the loss of human 8 rights established through the presence of the 9 United States and its allies over the past 17 years. 10 (2) It is the objective of the United States Gov- 11 ernment to ensure a secure and stable Afghanistan 12 that has the ability to secure its borders, maintain 13 its own military forces, and prevent the establish- 14 ment of terrorist safe havens that could be used to 15 launch attacks against the United States. 16 (3) A hasty withdrawal without ensuring the 17 stability of the Government of Afghanistan and its 18 ability to perform the functions as outlined will im- 19 pact the security of the United States and its allies. 20 Additionally, a hasty withdrawal will jeopardize the 21 tremendous gains made in development and human 22 rights for the citizens of Afghanistan. 23 (4) The current talks with the Taliban led by 24 Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad have ex- 25 cluded the legitimate Afghan government, despite 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:31 Apr 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2060.IH H2060 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2060 IH the apparent completion of two ‘‘draft’’ agreements 1 between the United States and the Taliban. Other 2 vital constituencies have been excluded as well. 3 (5) The foreign terrorist organization al Qaeda, 4 responsible for the attacks of September 11, 2001, 5 continues to operate in Afghanistan. 6 (6) The Taliban, which contests or controls ap- 7 proximately half of Afghanistan, has a strong and 8 intricate relationship with al Qaeda, and al Qaeda 9 still sees Afghanistan as a safe haven for its leader- 10 ship. 11 (7) The Taliban has not publicly disavowed al 12 Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, or al Qaeda’s current 13 leader, Ayman al Zawahiri. The Taliban has also 14 never apologized for harboring al Qaeda, the 9/11 15 hijackers, and others responsible for murdering 16 thousands of American citizens. 17 (8) The withdrawal of United States Armed 18 Forces from Afghanistan, a long-standing Taliban 19 demand, is a key component of the ongoing talks be- 20 tween the United States and the Taliban. 21 (9) The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, also 22 known as ISIS, grew rapidly after the United States 23 withdrawal of forces from Iraq in 2011. Today, ISIS 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:31 Apr 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2060.IH H2060 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2060 IH still controls thousands of militants, including in Af- 1 ghanistan. 2 (10) According to the administration’s South 3 Asia strategy, announced by the President in August 4 2017, ‘‘Conditions on the ground—not arbitrary 5 timetables—will guide our strategy from now on.’’. 6 SEC. 3. BRIEFING ON UNITED STATES-TALIBAN OR AFGHAN 7 TALKS AND ANY EFFECTS ON THE TOTAL 8 NUMBER OF MEMBERS OF THE ARMED 9 FORCES SERVING ON ACTIVE DUTY WHO ARE 10 DEPLOYED TO AFGHANISTAN. 11 (a) BRIEFING REQUIRED.—The Secretary of State or 12 the Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation 13 shall, in coordination with the Secretary of Defense, brief 14 the appropriate congressional committees regarding talks 15 with the Afghan government or the Taliban if any such 16 talks are ongoing, as well as the effects these talks are 17 having or will have on the posture of United States Armed 18 Forces in Afghanistan. The briefing may be provided in 19 unclassified or classified form. 20 (b) MONTHLY UPDATE.—A briefing described in 21 paragraph (1) shall occur— 22 (1) not later than 30 days after any initial dip- 23 lomatic engagement with the Taliban or the Afghan 24 Government; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:31 Apr 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2060.IH H2060 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 2060 IH (2) not later than 30 days after the enactment 1 of this Act, if such engagement is ongoing on such 2 date of enactment; and 3 (3) every 30 days thereafter until the close of 4 talks. 5 (c) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DE- 6 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘appropriate congres- 7 sional committees’’ means— 8 (1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 9 Committee on Armed Services, and the Permanent 10 Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of 11 Representatives; and 12 (2) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the 13 Committee on Armed Services, and the Select Com- 14 mittee on Intelligence of the Senate. 15 SEC. 4. LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS TO REDUCE THE 16 TOTAL NUMBER OF MEMBERS OF THE 17 ARMED FORCES SERVING ON ACTIVE DUTY 18 WHO ARE DEPLOYED TO AFGHANISTAN. 19 (a) IN GENERAL.—None of the funds made available 20 to the Department of Defense for fiscal year 2019 may 21 be used to reduce the total number of members of the 22 United States Armed Forces serving on active duty who 23 are deployed to Afghanistan below 10,000 unless, not later 24 than 180 days prior to such reduction, the Director of Na- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:31 Apr 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2060.IH H2060 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 2060 IH tional Intelligence certifies to the appropriate congres- 1 sional committees that the Taliban— 2 (1) including chief and deputy Taliban leaders 3 who may not have been present at the talks between 4 the United States and the Taliban, has rejected al 5 Qaeda by name; 6 (2) has committed not to— 7 (A) fight alongside al Qaeda; 8 (B) have financial ties with al Qaeda; 9 (C) communicate with al Qaeda; and 10 (D) have any other affiliation with al 11 Qaeda; 12 (3) supports the legitimacy of the Afghan Con- 13 stitution; 14 (4) commits to protecting the rights of women 15 and girls to access public healthcare, hold property, 16 access education, and have freedom of movement; 17 (5) commits to stop receiving funds and mili- 18 tary support from non-Afghan governments or orga- 19 nizations; 20 (6) will assist and be an active participant with 21 the Government of the United States and the Gov- 22 ernment of Afghanistan in future counterterrorism 23 operations; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:31 Apr 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2060.IH H2060 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 2060 IH (7) commits to ensuring that its full member- 1 ship is subject to the assurances described in this 2 paragraph; and 3 (8) commits to turn over to the Government of 4 Afghanistan any members of the Taliban that violate 5 any of the assurances described in this paragraph. 6 (b) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES 7 DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘appropriate con- 8 gressional committees’’ means— 9 (1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 10 Committee on Armed Services, and the Permanent 11 Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of 12 Representatives; and 13 (2) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the 14 Committee on Armed Services, and the Select Com- 15 mittee on Intelligence of the Senate. 16 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:31 Apr 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H2060.IH H2060 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS