[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 153 Referred in Senate (RFS)]

  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 153


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 24, 2005

      Received and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
Welcoming His Excellency Hamid Karzai, the President of Afghanistan, on 
    the occasion of his visit to the United States in May 2005 and 
  expressing support for a strong and enduring strategic partnership 
               between the United States and Afghanistan.

Whereas Afghanistan, a great nation located at the crossroads of many 
        civilizations, has suffered the ravages of war, foreign intervention, 
        occupation, and oppression;
Whereas the Afghan people courageously resisted the decade-long occupation of 
        their country by the former Soviet Union, forcing a Soviet withdrawal in 
        1989 and thereby contributing to the end of the Cold War;
Whereas following the Soviet withdrawal, Afghanistan went through a period of 
        chaos and conflict, exacerbated by insufficient attention from the 
        international community, during which time the Taliban militia seized 
        control of much of the country and provided a base of operations to Al 
        Qaeda and other terrorist elements;
Whereas following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the United States 
        launched Operation Enduring Freedom, liberating the Afghan people from 
        tyranny, transforming Afghanistan from a haven for terrorists into a 
        strategic partner in the struggle against international terrorism, and 
        helping Afghans build a democratic government;
Whereas the Afghan Constitution, drafted by a broadly representative Loya Jirga, 
        or Grand Council, and enacted on January 4, 2004, provides for equal 
        rights for and full participation of women, mandates full compliance 
        with international norms for human and civil rights, establishes 
        procedures for free and fair elections, creates a system of checks and 
        balances between the executive, legislative and judicial branches, 
        encourages a free market economy and private enterprise, and obligates 
        the state to prevent all types of terrorist activity and the production 
        and trafficking of narcotics;
Whereas more than 10.5 million Afghan men and women voted in national 
        presidential elections in October 2004, demonstrating commitment to 
        democracy, courage in the face of threats of violence, and a deep sense 
        of civic responsibility;
Whereas Hamid Karzai, formerly the interim President, was elected to a five-year 
        term as Afghanistan's first democratically-elected President in the 
        country's history;
Whereas nationwide parliamentary elections are planned for September 18, 2005, 
        and further demonstrate the Afghan Government's commitment to adhere to 
        democratic norms;
Whereas the Government of Afghanistan has demonstrated a firm commitment to 
        halting the cultivation and trafficking of narcotics and has cooperated 
        fully with the United States and its allies on a wide range of counter-
        narcotics initiatives;
Whereas in addition to military and law enforcement operations, President Karzai 
        welcomes the United States and the international community to assist 
        Afghanistan's counter-narcotics campaign by supporting programs to 
        provide alternative livelihoods for farmers, sustained economic 
        development, and governmental and security capacity building;
Whereas recognizing that long-term political stability requires sustained 
        economic security, Afghanistan is striving to create an economic base to 
        provide meaningful livelihoods for all of its people, and the United 
        States has a cooperative interest in helping Afghanistan achieve this 
        goal;
Whereas section 101(1) of the Afghanistan Freedom Support Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 
        7511(1)) declares that the ``United States and the international 
        community should support efforts that advance the development of 
        democratic civil authorities and institutions in Afghanistan and the 
        establishment of a new broad-based, multi-ethnic, gender-sensitive, and 
        fully representative government in Afghanistan'';
Whereas on June 15, 2004, during President Karzai's visit to the United States, 
        President George W. Bush stated: ``Afghanistan's journey to democracy 
        and peace deserves the support and respect of every nation. . . . The 
        world and the United States stand with [the people of Afghanistan] as 
        partners in their quest for peace and prosperity and stability and 
        democracy.'';
Whereas on June 15, 2004, in his address to a joint meeting of Congress, 
        President Karzai stated: ``We must build a partnership that will 
        consolidate our achievements and enhance stability, prosperity and 
        democracy in Afghanistan and in the region. This requires sustaining and 
        accelerating the reconstruction of Afghanistan, through long-term 
        commitment. . . . We must enhance our strategic partnership. The 
        security of our two nations are intertwined.'';
Whereas on April 13, 2005, while receiving the visiting United States Secretary 
        of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, President Karzai, in expressing the desire 
        of the Afghan people for a long-term strategic partnership with the 
        United States, stated: ``They want this relationship to be a wholesome 
        one, including a sustained economic relationship, a political 
        relationship, and most important of all, a strategic security 
        relationship that would enable Afghanistan to defend itself, to continue 
        to prosper, to stop interferences, the possibility of interferences in 
        Afghanistan.''; and
Whereas the people of the United States, and their elected representatives, are 
        honored to welcome President Karzai back to the United States in May 
        2005 on a visit that will further advance the close partnership between 
        the United States and Afghanistan: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That--
            (1) Congress welcomes the first democratically-elected 
        President of Afghanistan, His Excellency Hamid Karzai, as an 
        honored guest and valued friend upon his visit to the United 
        States in May 2005; and
            (2) it is the sense of Congress that--
                    (A) a democratic, stable, and prosperous 
                Afghanistan is a vital security interest of the United 
                States; and
                    (B) a strong and enduring strategic partnership 
                between the United States and Afghanistan should 
                continue to be a primary objective of both countries to 
                advance a shared vision of peace, freedom, security, 
                and broad-based economic development between the two 
                countries and throughout the world.

            Passed the House of Representatives May 23, 2005.

            Attest:

                                                 JEFF TRANDAHL,

                                                                 Clerk.