[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 494 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 494

Expressing the sense of the Senate on the need for Iraq's neighbors and 
   other international partners to fulfill their pledges to provide 
                   reconstruction assistance to Iraq.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

               April 1 (legislative day, March 13), 2008

    Mr. Casey (for himself and Mr. Corker) submitted the following 
  resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Expressing the sense of the Senate on the need for Iraq's neighbors and 
   other international partners to fulfill their pledges to provide 
                   reconstruction assistance to Iraq.

Whereas a sustained flow of international economic reconstruction assistance to 
        the Government of Iraq and provincial and regional authorities in Iraq 
        is essential to the restoration of basic services in Iraq, job creation, 
        and the future stabilization of that country;
Whereas reconstruction assistance should be administered in a transparent, 
        accountable, and equitable manner in order to help alleviate sectarian 
        grievances and facilitate national political reconciliation;
Whereas the United States has already spent approximately $29,000,000,000 on 
        reconstruction assistance and Congress has authorized the expenditure of 
        an additional $16,500,000,000 for reconstruction assistance;
Whereas, on December 18, 2007, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) 
        reported that, as of October 2007, international donors had pledged a 
        total of approximately $16,400,000,000 in support of Iraq's 
        reconstruction since 2003, of which roughly $13,600,000,000 was pledged 
        at an October 2003 donor conference in Madrid, Spain;
Whereas the GAO reported that international donors have provided only 
        approximately $7,000,000,000 for reconstruction assistance, or less than 
        half of the original pledged amount;
Whereas the conclusion reached by the Iraq Study Group (ISG) in December 2006 
        that ``[i]nternational support for Iraqi reconstruction has been tepid'' 
        remains true and reinforces the ISG's subsequent recommendation that 
        ``[a]n essential part of reconstruction efforts in Iraq should be 
        greater involvement by and with international partners, who should do 
        more than just contribute money. . . . [t]hey should also actively 
        participate in the design and construction of projects'';
Whereas Iraq's regional neighbors, in particular, carry a special imperative to 
        bolster reconstruction assistance efforts to Iraq, given the vital 
        importance of a peaceful and secure Iraq to their security interests and 
        overall regional stability; and
Whereas those countries have prospered in recent years due to the rising price 
        of their oil exports and enjoy expanded government revenue from which 
        funds could be allocated for reconstruction assistance to Iraq: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
            (1) Iraq's neighbors and other key international partners 
        should fully carry through on previous pledges of 
        reconstruction assistance to the Government of Iraq, working to 
        mitigate and circumvent, where necessary, potential obstacles 
        to the effective implementation of those pledges; and
            (2) the United States should consider a recommendation 
        proposed by the Iraq Study Group to merge reconstruction 
        assistance funds provided by the United States with funds from 
        international donors and Iraqi participants to help ensure that 
        assistance projects in Iraq are carried out in the most rapid 
        and efficient manner possible.
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