117 HR 6601 IH: Saudi Arabia Legitimate Self Defense Act
U.S. House of Representatives
2022-02-04
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EN
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I
117th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6601
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 4, 2022
Mr. Malinowski (for himself, Mr. McGovern, Mr. Lieu, Mr. Moulton, Mr. Allred, Ms. Porter, and Mr. Castro of Texas) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
A BILL
To provide for the prohibition on issuance of licenses authorizing exports of certain defense services to Saudi Arabia, and for other purposes.
1.

Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Saudi Arabia Legitimate Self Defense Act”.
2.

Sense of Congress
It is the sense of Congress that, for purposes of compliance with and implementation of section 502 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2302; relating to utilization of defense articles) and section 4 of the Foreign Military Sales Act (22 U.S.C. 2754; relating to purposes for which military sales by the United States are authorized)—
(1)
officials from the Department of State and Department of Defense who oversee security cooperation with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have an obligation to be alert to and report to the Secretary of Defense and Secretary of State any indication that United States-origin defense articles are being used against anything other than legitimate military targets; and
(2)
the Department of State is responsible, under United States law and consistent with United States policy, for investigating such incidents of potential misuse and imposing restrictions, as appropriate, on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in instances in which it is suspected of not utilizing United States-origin defense articles consistent with United States law.
3.

Statement of policy
It shall be the policy of the United States that—
(1)
for purposes of compliance with section 502 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2302; relating to utilization of defense articles) and section 4 of the Foreign Military Sales Act (22 U.S.C. 2754; relating to purposes for which military sales by the United States are authorized), offensive strikes on Houthi (Ansar Allah) ground forces in Yemen by the armed forces of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia do not constitute “legitimate self defense”, “internal security”, nor “preventing or hindering the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or the means of delivering such weapons”; and
(2)
consistent with section 3(g) of the Foreign Military Sales Act (22 U.S.C. 2753(g); relating to unauthorized use of articles), the United States retains the right to verify credible reports that Saudi Air Force aircraft have been used for purposes other than those authorized under contract terms consistent with the Arms Export Control Act.
4.

Report
(a)

In general
For purposes of compliance with section 502 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2302; relating to utilization of defense articles) and section 4 of the Foreign Military Sales Act (22 U.S.C. 2754; relating to purposes for which military sales by the United States are authorized), the Secretary of State shall, not later than 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that includes the following:
(1)
A description of strikes by the Saudi Air Force in Yemen, from 2015 to the present, that the United States Government considers “legitimate self defense”, “internal security”, and “preventing or hindering the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or the means of delivering such weapons”.
(2)
A description of strikes by Saudi Arabia in Yemen, from 2015 from present, that the intelligence community assesses do not constitute “legitimate self defense”, “internal security”, and “preventing or hindering the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or the means of delivering such weapons,” consistent with the statement of policy described in section 3.
(3)
A description of the investigations that the United States Government carried out relating to the strikes described in paragraph (2).
(4)
A description of any violations of the terms of sale for United States Munitions List-listed aircraft to Saudi Arabia for purposes of compliance with 3(c)(2) of the Foreign Military Sales Act that the investigations described in paragraph (3) found.
(5)
A copy of the Department of State’s standing guidance to all personnel, including those operating under Chief of Mission supervision at United States embassies, for reporting any indication that United States-origin defense articles are being used by Saudi Arabia in Yemen against anything other than legitimate military targets.
(6)
A copy of the Department of State’s procedures for investigating and reporting to the Secretary of State on the outcome of any investigations of any indication that United States-origin defense articles are being used by Saudi Arabia in Yemen against anything other than legitimate military targets.
(7)
A certification from the Secretary of State that the guidance described in paragraph (5) is being faithfully and consistently implemented by all Department of State personnel, as required by United States law and policy.
(b)

Form
The report required by subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may contain a classified annex.
5.

Prohibition on issuance of licenses authorizing exports of certain defense services to Saudi Arabia
For the 2-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the President may not issue any license, and shall suspend any license or other approval that was issued before such date of enactment, authorizing the export to the Government of Saudi Arabia of defense services related to the maintenance or servicing of United States-provided aircraft belonging to military units determined to have undertaken offensive airstrikes inside Yemen in the preceding year that are not related directly to preventing or degrading the ability of Houthi (Ansar Allah) forces to launch missile and unmanned aircraft strikes on the territory of Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates.
6.

Quarterly updates on end-use monitoring of Saudi Arabia use of United States-origin weapons in Yemen
(a)

In general
Beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act and until such a date as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is assessed by the intelligence community to no longer be conducting airstrikes in Yemen, the Secretary of State, in coordination with the Director of National Intelligence, shall submit quarterly reports to the relevant committees with the following information:
(1)
A description of strikes by the Saudi Air Force in Yemen over the past three months that the United States Government considers “legitimate self defense”, “internal security”, and “preventing or hindering the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or the means of delivering such weapons”.
(2)
A description of strikes by Saudi Arabia in Yemen, over the past three months that the intelligence community assesses do not constitute “legitimate self defense”, “internal security”, and “preventing or hindering the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or the means of delivering such weapons,” consistent with the statement of policy described in section 3.
(3)
A description of the investigations that the United States Government carried out of the strikes described in paragraph (2).
(4)
A description of any violations of the terms of sale for United States Munitions List-listed aircraft to Saudi Arabia for purposes of compliance with 3(c)(2) of the Foreign Military Sales Act that the investigations described in paragraph (3) found.
(5)
A certification from the Secretary of State that, consistent with United States law and policy—
(A)
all Department of State personnel are implementing faithfully and consistently their obligations under United States law and policy to be alert to and report to the Secretary of State any indication that United States-origin defense articles are being used against anything other than legitimate military targets in Yemen; and
(B)
the Department of State is investigating any indications that United States-origin defense articles are not being used against anything other than legitimate military targets in Yemen and taking necessary corrective actions to ensure compliance with United States law and policy.
(b)

Form
The report required by subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may contain a classified annex.
7.

Definitions
In this Act:
(1)

Appropriate congressional committees
The term “appropriate congressional committees” means—
(A)
the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on Armed Services, and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives; and
(B)
the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on Armed Services, and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate.
(2)

Intelligence community
The term “intelligence community” has the meaning given that term in section 3 of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3003).