Taliban Sanctions Act of 2023

II 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1768 To impose sanctions with respect to the Taliban, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MAY 31 (legislative day, MAY 30), 2023 Mr. RISCH (for himself, Mr. CASSIDY, Mr. BOOZMAN, Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. RICKETTS, Mr. BRAUN, Mr. SCOTT of Florida, Mr. BUDD, Mr. HOEVEN, Ms. ERNST, Mr. GRAHAM, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. YOUNG, Mr. CORNYN, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. THUNE, Mr. TILLIS, Mr. LANKFORD, and Mr. CRUZ) intro- duced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Com- mittee on Foreign Relations A BILL To impose sanctions with respect to the Taliban, 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 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Taliban Sanctions Act 4 of 2023’’. 5 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 6 In this Act: 7 (1) ADMISSION; ADMITTED; ALIEN.—The terms 8 ‘‘admission’’, ‘‘admitted’’, and ‘‘alien’’ have the 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:15 Jun 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1768.IS S1768 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1768 IS meanings given those terms in section 101 of the 1 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101). 2 (2) AGRICULTURAL COMMODITY.—The term 3 ‘‘agricultural commodity’’ has the meaning given 4 that term in section 102 of the Agricultural Trade 5 Act of 1978 (7 U.S.C. 5602). 6 (3) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT- 7 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com- 8 mittees’’ means— 9 (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations 10 and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 11 Urban Affairs of the Senate; and 12 (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and 13 the Committee on Financial Services of the 14 House of Representatives. 15 (4) FOREIGN PERSON.—The term ‘‘foreign per- 16 son’’ means a person that is not a United States 17 person. 18 (5) MEDICAL DEVICE.—The term ‘‘medical de- 19 vice’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘device’’ in 20 section 201 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cos- 21 metic Act (21 U.S.C. 321). 22 (6) MEDICINE.—The term ‘‘medicine’’ has the 23 meaning given the term ‘‘drug’’ in section 201 of the 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:15 Jun 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1768.IS S1768 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1768 IS Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 1 321). 2 (7) UNITED STATES PERSON.—The term 3 ‘‘United States person’’ means— 4 (A) a citizen of the United States or an 5 alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence 6 to the United States; or 7 (B) an entity organized under the laws of 8 the United States or any jurisdiction within the 9 United States, including a foreign branch of 10 such entity. 11 SEC. 3. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO TER- 12 RORISM, HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES, AND NAR- 13 COTICS TRAFFICKING COMMITTED BY THE 14 TALIBAN AND OTHERS IN AFGHANISTAN. 15 (a) SANCTIONS RELATING TO SUPPORT FOR TER- 16 RORISM.—In addition to authorities under Executive 17 Order 13224 (50 U.S.C. 1701 note; relating to blocking 18 property and prohibiting transactions with persons who 19 commit, threaten to commit, or support terrorism) under 20 which the President has designated the Taliban and the 21 Haqqani Network as specially designated global terrorist 22 groups and section 219 of the Immigration and Nation- 23 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1189) under which the President has 24 designated the Haqqani Network as a foreign terrorist or- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:15 Jun 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1768.IS S1768 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1768 IS ganization, the President shall impose the sanctions de- 1 scribed in subsection (d) with respect to a foreign person, 2 including a member of the Taliban, if the President deter- 3 mines that the person, on or after the date that is 90 days 4 after the date of the enactment of this Act, is knowingly 5 responsible for, complicit in, or has directly or indirectly 6 provided financial, material, or technological support for, 7 or financial or other services in support of, a terrorist 8 group operating in Afghanistan. 9 (b) SANCTIONS RELATING TO HUMAN RIGHTS 10 ABUSES.—The President shall impose the sanctions de- 11 scribed in subsection (d) with respect to a foreign person, 12 including a member of the Taliban, if the President deter- 13 mines that the person, on or after the date that is 90 days 14 after the date of the enactment of this Act, is responsible 15 for, complicit in, or has directly or indirectly engaged in, 16 serious human rights abuses in Afghanistan. 17 (c) SANCTIONS RELATING TO DRUG TRAFFICKING.— 18 The President shall impose the sanctions described in sub- 19 section (d) with respect to a foreign person, including a 20 member of the Taliban, if the President determines that 21 the person, on or after the date that is 90 days after the 22 date of the enactment of this Act, knowingly— 23 (1) plays a significant role in international nar- 24 cotics trafficking in Afghanistan; or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:15 Jun 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1768.IS S1768 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1768 IS (2) provides significant financial, material, or 1 technological support for, or significant financial or 2 other services to or in support of, any person de- 3 scribed in paragraph (1). 4 (d) SANCTIONS DESCRIBED.—The sanctions de- 5 scribed in this subsection are the following: 6 (1) PROPERTY BLOCKING.—The exercise of all 7 of the powers granted to the President under the 8 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 9 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to the extent necessary to block 10 and prohibit all transactions in property and inter- 11 ests in property of a foreign person described in sub- 12 section (a), (b), or (c) if such property and interests 13 in property are in the United States, come within 14 the United States, or come within the possession or 15 control of a United States person. 16 (2) INELIGIBILITY FOR VISAS, ADMISSION, OR 17 PAROLE.— 18 (A) VISAS, ADMISSION, OR PAROLE.—An 19 alien described in subsection (a), (b), or (c) 20 shall be— 21 (i) inadmissible to the United States; 22 (ii) ineligible to receive a visa or other 23 documentation to enter the United States; 24 and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:15 Jun 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1768.IS S1768 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1768 IS (iii) otherwise ineligible to be admitted 1 or paroled into the United States or to re- 2 ceive any other benefit under the Immigra- 3 tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et 4 seq.). 5 (B) CURRENT VISAS REVOKED.— 6 (i) IN GENERAL.—The visa or other 7 entry documentation of any alien described 8 in subsection (a), (b), or (c) is subject to 9 revocation regardless of the issue date of 10 the visa or other entry documentation. 11 (ii) IMMEDIATE EFFECT.—A revoca- 12 tion under clause (i) shall— 13 (I) take effect immediately; and 14 (II) cancel any other valid visa or 15 entry documentation that is in the 16 possession of the alien. 17 SEC. 4. SUPPORT FOR MULTILATERAL SANCTIONS WITH 18 RESPECT TO THE TALIBAN. 19 (a) VOICE AND VOTE AT UNITED NATIONS.—The 20 Secretary of State shall use the voice and vote of the 21 United States at the United Nations to maintain the sanc- 22 tions with respect to the Taliban described in and imposed 23 pursuant to United Nations Security Council Resolution 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:15 Jun 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1768.IS S1768 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1768 IS 1988 (2011) and United Nations Security Council Resolu- 1 tion 2255 (2015). 2 (b) ENGAGEMENT WITH ALLIES AND PARTNERS.— 3 The Secretary of State shall, acting through the Office 4 of Sanctions Coordination established under section 1(h) 5 of the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 6 (22 U.S.C. 2651a(h)), engage with the governments of al- 7 lies and partners of the United States to promote their 8 use of sanctions with respect to the Taliban, particularly 9 for any support for terrorism, serious human rights 10 abuses, or international narcotics trafficking. 11 SEC. 5. IMPLEMENTATION; PENALTIES. 12 (a) IMPLEMENTATION.—The President may exercise 13 all authorities provided under sections 203 and 205 of the 14 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 15 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out this Act. 16 (b) PENALTIES.—A person that violates, attempts to 17 violate, conspires to violate, or causes a violation of this 18 Act or any regulation, license, or order issued to carry out 19 this Act shall be subject to the penalties set forth in sub- 20 sections (b) and (c) of section 206 of the International 21 Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) to the 22 same extent as a person that commits an unlawful act de- 23 scribed in subsection (a) of that section. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:15 Jun 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1768.IS S1768 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1768 IS (c) BRIEFING ON IMPLEMENTATION OF SANC- 1 TIONS.— 2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 3 the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 90 4 days thereafter through December 31, 2026, the 5 Secretary of State and the Secretary of the Treasury 6 shall jointly brief the appropriate congressional com- 7 mittees on the implementation of sanctions under 8 this Act. 9 (2) ELEMENTS.—Each briefing required under 10 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 11 (A) A description of the number and iden- 12 tity of foreign persons with respect to which 13 sanctions were imposed under section 3 during 14 the 90-day period preceding submission of the 15 report and a brief justification for the imposi- 16 tion of those sanctions with respect to each 17 such person. 18 (B) A description of the efforts of the 19 United States Government to maintain sanc- 20 tions with respect to the Taliban at the United 21 Nations pursuant to section 4(a) during that 22 period. 23 (C) A description of the impact of sanc- 24 tions imposed under section 3 on the behavior 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:15 Jun 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1768.IS S1768 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1768 IS of the Taliban, other groups, and other foreign 1 governments during that period. 2 (D) A description of— 3 (i) the impact of sanctions imposed 4 under section 3 on Afghan civilians, par- 5 ticularly women and girls; and 6 (ii) the extent to which those sanc- 7 tions affect the delivery of humanitarian, 8 peacebuilding, education, and other devel- 9 opment assistance to the Afghan people. 10 SEC. 6. WAIVERS; EXCEPTIONS; SUSPENSION. 11 (a) WAIVER.— 12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The President may waive 13 the application of sanctions under this Act with re- 14 spect to a foreign person if the President, not later 15 than 10 days before the waiver is to take effect, de- 16 termines and certifies to the appropriate congres- 17 sional committees that such waiver is in the national 18 security interest of the United States. 19 (2) DETAILED JUSTIFICATION.—The President 20 shall submit with each certification in connection 21 with a waiver under paragraph (1) a detailed jus- 22 tification in writing explaining the reasons for the 23 waiver. 24 (b) EXCEPTIONS.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:15 Jun 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1768.IS S1768 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1768 IS (1) EXCEPTION FOR INTELLIGENCE ACTIVI- 1 TIES.—Sanctions under this Act shall not apply to 2 any activity subject to the reporting requirements 3 under title V of the National Security Act of 1947 4 (50 U.S.C. 3091 et seq.) or any authorized intel- 5 ligence activities of the United States. 6 (2) EXCEPTION TO COMPLY WITH INTER- 7 NATIONAL OBLIGATIONS AND FOR LAW ENFORCE- 8 MENT ACTIVITIES.—Sanctions under section 3(d)(2) 9 shall not apply with respect to an alien if admitting 10 or paroling the alien into the United States is nec- 11 essary— 12 (A) to permit the United States to comply 13 with the Agreement regarding the Head- 14 quarters of the United Nations, signed at Lake 15 Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force 16 November 21, 1947, between the United Na- 17 tions and the United States, or other applicable 18 international obligations; or 19 (B) to carry out or assist law enforcement 20 activity in the United States. 21 (3) EXCEPTION RELATING TO IMPORTATION OF 22 GOODS.— 23 (A) IN GENERAL.—The authorities and re- 24 quirements to impose sanctions under this Act 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:15 Jun 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1768.IS S1768 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1768 IS shall not include the authority or a requirement 1 to impose sanctions on the importation of 2 goods. 3 (B) GOOD DEFINED.—In this paragraph, 4 the term ‘‘good’’ means any article, natural or 5 man-made substance, material, supply, or man- 6 ufactured product, including inspection and test 7 equipment, and excluding technical data. 8 (c) SUSPENSION OF SANCTIONS.— 9 (1) SUSPENSION.—The Secretary of State, in 10 consultation with the Director of National Intel- 11 ligence and the Secretary of the Treasury, may sus- 12 pend the imposition of sanctions under this Act if 13 the Secretary of State certifies in writing to the ap- 14 propriate congressional committees that the Taliban 15 has— 16 (A) publicly and privately broken all ties 17 with other terrorist groups, including al Qaeda; 18 (B) taken verifiable measures to prevent 19 the use of Afghanistan as a platform for ter- 20 rorist attacks against the United States or 21 partners or allies of the United States, includ- 22 ing by denying sanctuary space, transit of Af- 23 ghan territory, and use of Afghanistan for ter- 24 rorist training, planning, or equipping; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:15 Jun 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1768.IS S1768 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •S 1768 IS (C) provided humanitarian actors with full, 1 unimpeded access to vulnerable populations 2 throughout Afghanistan without interference or 3 diversion; 4 (D) respected freedom of movement, in- 5 cluding by facilitating the departure of foreign 6 nationals, applicants for the special immigrant 7 visa program, and other at-risk Afghans by air 8 or land routes, and the safe, voluntary, and dig- 9 nified return of displaced persons; and 10 (E) supported the establishment of an in- 11 clusive government of Afghanistan that respects 12 the rule of law, press freedom, and internation- 13 ally recognized human rights, including th [Text truncated for display. 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