A joint resolution expressing the sense of Congress on the precipitous withdrawal of United States Armed Forces from Syria and Afghanistan, and Turkey's unprovoked incursion into Syria.

IIA Calendar No. 259 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. J. RES. 59 Expressing the sense of Congress on the precipitous withdrawal of United States Armed Forces from Syria and Afghanistan, and Turkey’s unprovoked incursion into Syria. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES OCTOBER 22, 2019 Mr. MCCONNELL (for himself, Mr. BURR, Mr. GRAHAM, Mr. INHOFE, Mr. RISCH, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. BARRASSO, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. ISAKSON, Mrs. BLACKBURN, Ms. MCSALLY, Mr. BLUNT, Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. CRUZ, Mr. WICKER, Mr. LANKFORD, Mr. TOOMEY, Mr. SULLIVAN, Ms. ERNST, Mrs. FISCHER, and Mr. ROBERTS) introduced the following joint resolution; which was read the first time OCTOBER 23, 2019 Read the second time and placed on the calendar JOINT RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of Congress on the precipitous with- drawal of United States Armed Forces from Syria and Afghanistan, and Turkey’s unprovoked incursion into Syria. Whereas the Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham, better known by its acronym ISIS, flourished in the chaos unleashed by the civil war in Syria and at one point controlled ex- tensive territory in Iraq and Syria; VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Oct 23, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SJ59.PCS SJ59 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •SJ 59 PCS Whereas ISIS murdered thousands of innocent civilians, in- cluding Americans, and sought to ethnically cleanse the territory it controlled of religious minorities; Whereas the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, which is composed of Kurdish and Arab fighters, remains an es- sential United States partner in the successful campaign to destroy ISIS’ so-called ‘‘caliphate’’; Whereas, backed by the United States and United States al- lies, the Syrian Democratic Forces liberated millions of Syrians from ISIS’ terrorist regime, and sustained ap- proximately 11,000 casualties in the fight; Whereas ISIS, al Qaeda, and their affiliates have proven re- silient and have regrouped when the United States and its partners have withdrawn from the fight against them; Whereas Turkey’s unprovoked incursion into northeastern Syria, which began on October 9, 2019, has displaced more than 166,000 civilians, according to the United Na- tions High Commissioner on Refugees, and dozens of ci- vilians have been killed on both sides; Whereas, as a result of Turkey’s incursion into northeastern Syria and the withdrawal of United States Armed Forces, the Syrian Democratic Forces have turned to Russia and the brutal Assad regime for support, while more than a hundred ISIS-affiliated detainees have es- caped from detention facilities; and Whereas the Assad regime is responsible for murdering at least 500,000 civilians and displacing at least 12,000,000 Syrians, or roughly half the country’s population at the time that the civil war began in 2011, and the regime’s return to northeastern Syria through its new partnership with the Syrian Democratic Forces will allow the regime VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Oct 23, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SJ59.PCS SJ59 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •SJ 59 PCS to extend its murderous campaign and again subjugate the Kurdish, Sunni Arab, and religious minorities of northeastern Syria: Now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives 1 of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 That Congress— 3 (1) condemns in the strongest terms the Gov- 4 ernment of Turkey’s escalating hostilities against 5 Kurdish partners of the United States in Syria, 6 while recognizing the Government of Turkey’s legiti- 7 mate humanitarian, economic, and security concerns 8 emanating from the conflict in Syria; 9 (2) calls upon the United States Government to 10 pressure the Government of Turkey, including 11 through sanctions, to act with restraint, provide ac- 12 countability for human rights abuses conducted by 13 militias acting in support of Turkish military oper- 14 ations, and curtail its hostilities against United 15 States partner forces in Syria; 16 (3) reiterates United States opposition to the 17 forced repatriation of refugees from third countries 18 into Syria, and calls upon all refugee returns to be 19 safe, dignified, and voluntary; 20 (4) urges the President to rescind his invitation 21 to the White House to Turkish President Recep 22 Tayyip Erdogan until a more enduring cease-fire has 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Oct 23, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SJ59.PCS SJ59 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •SJ 59 PCS been established between Turkish and Kurdish 1 forces in northeastern Syria; 2 (5) calls upon the United States Government to 3 continue supporting liberated Syrian Kurdish and 4 Arab communities in northeast Syria through hu- 5 manitarian support, including those displaced or oth- 6 erwise affected by ongoing violence in Syria, and 7 calls upon other nations to increase support to sta- 8 bilization efforts in northeastern Syria; 9 (6) strongly opposes any abandonment of our 10 Kurdish and Arab partners in Syria; 11 (7) calls for a halt to the withdrawal of United 12 States Armed Forces from Syria where practical, 13 and calls for the continued use of air power to target 14 ISIS and provide protection of ethnic and religious 15 minorities in northeastern Syria; 16 (8) expresses support for a continued United 17 States military presence in Iraq, along with efforts 18 to help Iraqi forces control their border, protect 19 their sovereignty, and counter ISIS; 20 (9) recognizes the continuing threat to United 21 States and United States allies posed by al Qaeda 22 and ISIS, which maintain an ability to operate in 23 Syria and Afghanistan; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Oct 23, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SJ59.PCS SJ59 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •SJ 59 PCS (10) warns that a precipitous withdrawal of 1 United States forces from the ongoing fight against 2 these groups, without effective, countervailing efforts 3 to secure gains in Syria and Afghanistan, could 4 allow terrorists to regroup, destabilize critical re- 5 gions, and create vacuums that could be filled by 6 Iran or Russia, to the detriment of United States in- 7 terests and those of our allies; 8 (11) recognizes that an unbroken chain of Ira- 9 nian-controlled territory across Syria poses a signifi- 10 cant threat to Israel; 11 (12) reiterates support for international diplo- 12 matic efforts to facilitate peaceful, negotiated resolu- 13 tions to the ongoing conflicts in Syria and Afghani- 14 stan on terms that respect the rights of innocent ci- 15 vilians and deny safe havens to terrorists; 16 (13) encourages close collaboration between the 17 executive branch and the legislative branch to ensure 18 continuing strong, bipartisan support for United 19 States military operations in Syria and Afghanistan; 20 and 21 (14) calls upon the President to certify whether 22 conditions have been met for the enduring defeat of 23 al Qaeda and ISIS before initiating any further sig- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Oct 23, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SJ59.PCS SJ59 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •SJ 59 PCS nificant withdrawal of United States forces from the 1 region. 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Oct 23, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SJ59.PCS SJ59 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Oct 23, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SJ59.PCS SJ59 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS Calendar No. 259 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. J. RES. 59 JOINT RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of Congress on the precipitous withdrawal of United States Armed Forces from Syria and Afghanistan, and Turkey’s unprovoked incursion into Syria. OCTOBER 23, 2019 Read the second time and placed on the calendar VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Oct 23, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6651 Sfmt 6651 E:\BILLS\SJ59.PCS SJ59 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS