[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2760 Introduced in House (IH)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2760

  To limit United States assistance for Ethiopia and Eritrea if those 
   countries are not in compliance with the terms and conditions of 
  agreements entered into by the two countries to end hostilities and 
provide for a demarcation of the border between the two countries, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 16, 2003

 Mr. Lantos (for himself and Mr. Payne) introduced the following bill; 
     which was referred to the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To limit United States assistance for Ethiopia and Eritrea if those 
   countries are not in compliance with the terms and conditions of 
  agreements entered into by the two countries to end hostilities and 
provide for a demarcation of the border between the two countries, and 
                          for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Resolution of the Ethiopa-Eritrea 
Border Dispute Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Algiers agreements.--The term ``Algiers Agreements'' 
        means the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement and the 
        Comprehensive Peace Agreement.
            (2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee on 
        International Relations of the House of Representatives and the 
        Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate.
            (3) Cessation of hostilities agreement.--The term 
        ``Cessation of Hostilities Agreement'' means the Agreement on 
        the Cessation of Hostilities signed on June 18, 2000, in 
        Algiers, Algeria, by the Government of Ethiopia and the 
        Government of Eritrea that established a temporary 
        demilitarized security zone within Eritrea to be enforced by 
        the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea 
        (UNMEE).
            (4) Comprehensive peace agreement.--The term 
        ``Comprehensive Peace Agreement'' means the agreement signed on 
        December 12, 2000, in Algiers, Algeria, by the Government of 
        Ethiopia and the Government of Eritrea, under the auspices of 
        the Organization of African Unity (OAU), that provided for an 
        end to military hostilities between the two countries, 
        assurances by the countries to refrain from the threat or use 
        of force against each other, and established a neutral Boundary 
        Commission to delimit and demarcate the border between the two 
        countries.
            (5) Economic assistance.--The term ``economic assistance'' 
        means--
                    (A) assistance under chapter 1 of part I of the 
                Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (relating to development 
                assistance); and
                    (B) assistance under chapter 4 of part II of the 
                Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (relating to economic 
                support fund assistance).
            (6) Military assistance and arms transfers.--The term 
        ``military assistance and arms transfers'' means--
                    (A) assistance under chapter 2 of part II of the 
                Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (relating to military 
                assistance), including the transfer of excess defense 
                articles under section 516 of that Act;
                    (B) assistance under chapter 5 of part II of the 
                Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (relating to 
                international military education and training or 
                ``IMET''), including military education and training 
                for civilian personnel under section 541 of that Act 
                (commonly referred to as ``Expanded IMET''); and
                    (C) assistance under the ``Foreign Military 
                Financing'' Program under section 23 of the Arms Export 
                Control Act and the transfer of defense articles, 
                defense services, design and construction services, or 
                any other defense-related training under that Act.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) On May 6, 1998, a conflict erupted between Ethiopia and 
        Eritrea, two of the world's poorest countries.
            (2) The two-year war claimed 100,000 lives, displaced more 
        than 1,000,000 people, cost Ethiopia more than $2,900,000,000, 
        and caused a 62 percent decline in food production in Eritrea.
            (3) Millions of dollars were diverted from much needed 
        development projects into military activities and weapons 
        procurements at a time when severe drought threatened a famine 
        in both Ethiopia and Eritrea, as bad as the famine in 1984 in 
        those countries, putting more than 13,000,000 lives at risk.
            (4) On June 18, 2000, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of the 
        Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and President Issaias 
        Afewerki of the State of Eritrea signed the Cessation of 
        Hostilities Agreement in Algiers, Algeria. On December 12, 
        2000, the two countries also signed the Comprehensive Peace 
        Agreement in Algiers under the auspices of the Organization of 
        African Unity (OAU) and in the presence of United Nations 
        Secretary General Kofi Annan and President Abdel-Aziz 
        Boutheflika of Algeria.
            (5) Article 4.2 of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement states 
        the following: ``The parties agree that a neutral Boundary 
        Commission composed of five members shall be established with a 
        mandate to delimit and demarcate the colonial treaty border 
        [between the two countries] based on pertinent colonial 
        treaties (1900, 1902 and 1908) and applicable international 
        law.''.
            (6) Article 4.15 of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement 
        states the following: ``The parties agree that the delimitation 
        and demarcation determinations of the Commission shall be final 
and binding. Each party shall respect the border so determined, as well 
as territorial integrity and sovereignty of the other party.''.
            (7)(A) The President of the United Nations Security 
        Council, on behalf of the Security Council, confirmed the 
        Security Council's endorsement of the terms and conditions of 
        the Algiers Agreements, with special reference to the neutral 
        Boundary Commission described in Article 4.2 of the 
        Comprehensive Peace Agreement and its mandate.
            (B) In addition, the Security Council reaffirmed its 
        support for the Algiers Agreements in United Nations Security 
        Council Resolution 1308 (July 17, 2000), 1312 (July 31, 2000), 
        1320 (September 15, 2000), 1344 (March 15, 2001), 1369 
        (September 14, 2001), 1398 (March 15, 2002), 1430 (August 14, 
        2002), 1434 (September 6, 2002), and 1466 (March 14, 2003).
            (8) On April 13, 2002, the neutral Boundary Commission 
        announced its ``Delimitation Decision'', reiterating that both 
        parties had agreed that it would be ``final and binding''.
            (9) Following the decision of the Boundary Commission that 
        the heavily disputed town of Badme would be zoned to the 
        Eritrean side of the new border, Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin 
        of Ethiopia announced on April 15, 2003, that ``[n]o-one 
        expects the [G]overnment of Ethiopia to accept these mistakes 
        committed by the Commission''. Further, the Ethiopian Ministry 
        of Information released a statement accusing the Boundary 
        Commission of an ``unfair tendency'' in implementing the border 
        ruling and ``misinterpreting'' the Algiers Agreements.
            (10) In his March 6, 2003, ``Progress Report'' to the 
        United Nations Security Council, Secretary General Kofi Annan 
        reported that Prime Minister Zenawi of Ethiopia had expressed 
        to his Special Representative, Legwaila Joseph Legwaila, that 
        ``if its concerns were not adequately addressed Ethiopia might 
        eventually reject the demarcation-related decisions of the 
        Commission''.
            (11) The independent Boundary Commission has investigated, 
        reviewed, and rejected Ethiopia's claims with respect to the 
        village of Badme, and in a report issued on March 21, 2003, 
        stated that, based on the boundary line from the 1902 treaty 
        between the two countries that was used as the reference under 
        the terms of the Algiers Agreements, the evidence submitted by 
        the Government of Ethiopia to support its claim was 
        ``inadequate and inconsistent'' and the Commission ``cannot 
        allow one party to claim a territorial right, to insist on 
        adjustments of parts of the boundary which that party finds 
        disadvantageous''.

SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that both Ethiopia and Eritrea should 
take all appropriate actions to implement the Algiers Agreements, 
including by accepting the ``Delimitation Decision'' issued by the 
neutral Boundary Commission on April 13, 2002, with respect to the 
boundary between the two countries.

SEC. 5. DECLARATIONS OF POLICY.

    Congress makes the following declarations:
            (1) Congress expresses its support for the Boundary 
        Commission established by the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and 
        calls on the international community to continue to support the 
        United Nations trust fund established to facilitate the process 
        of demarcation between Ethiopia and Eritrea and the economic 
        and social transition of affected communities to new borders 
        determined by the Commission.
            (2) Congress further declares that it shall be the policy 
        of the United States to limit United States assistance for 
        Ethiopia or Eritrea if either such country is not in compliance 
        with, or is not taking significant steps to comply with, the 
        terms and conditions of the Algiers Agreements.
            (3) Congress strongly condemns recent statements by senior 
        Ethiopian officials criticizing the Boundary Commission's 
        decision and calls on the Government of Ethiopia to immediately 
        end its intransigence and fully cooperate with the Commission.

SEC. 6. LIMITATIONS ON UNITED STATES ASSISTANCE.

    (a) Limitation on Economic Assistance.--Economic assistance may 
only be provided for Ethiopia or Eritrea for any period of time for 
which the President determines that Ethiopia or Eritrea (as the case 
may be) is in compliance with, or is taking significant steps to comply 
with, the terms and conditions of the Algiers Agreements.
    (b) Limitation on Military Assistance and Arms Transfers.--Military 
assistance and arms transfers may only be provided for Ethiopia or 
Eritrea for any period of time for which the President determines that 
Ethiopia or Eritrea (as the case may be) is in compliance with, or is 
taking significant steps to comply with, the terms and conditions of 
the Algiers Agreements.
    (c) Exceptions.--The limitation on assistance under subsections (a) 
and (b) shall not apply with respect to humanitarian assistance (such 
as food or medical assistance), peacekeeping assistance, 
counterterrorism initiatives, assistance to protect or promote human 
rights, and assistance to prevent, treat, and control HIV/AIDS.
    (d) Waiver.--The President may waive the application of subsection 
(a) or (b) with respect to Ethiopia or Eritrea if the President 
determines that it is in the national security interests of the United 
States to do so.

SEC. 7. REPORT.

    Until the date on which the border demarcation between Ethiopia and 
Eritrea is finalized, the President shall prepare and transmit on a 
regular basis to the appropriate congressional committees a report that 
contains a description of progress being made toward such demarcation, 
including the extent to which Ethiopia and Eritrea are in compliance 
with, or are taking significant steps to comply with, the terms and 
conditions of the Algiers Agreements.
                                 <all>