[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 540 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 540

Requesting information on Azerbaijan's human rights practices pursuant 
       to section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            February 1, 2024

   Mr. Markey (for himself, Mr. Cassidy, Mr. Peters, Mr. Rubio, Mr. 
  Whitehouse, Ms. Warren, Mr. Welch, Mr. Menendez, and Mr. Fetterman) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                          on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Requesting information on Azerbaijan's human rights practices pursuant 
       to section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.

    Resolved,

SECTION 1. REQUEST FOR INFORMATION ON AZERBAIJAN'S HUMAN RIGHTS 
              PRACTICES.

    (a) Statement Requested.--The Senate requests that the Secretary of 
State, not later than 30 days after the date of the adoption of this 
resolution, transmit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House 
of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
Senate, pursuant to section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 
1961 (22 U.S.C. 2304(c)), a statement, prepared in collaboration with 
the Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor 
and the Office of the Legal Adviser, regarding Azerbaijan's human 
rights practices.
    (b) Elements.--The statement submitted under subsection (a) shall 
include the following elements:
            (1) All available information about the observance and 
        respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in 
        Azerbaijan, including information concerning alleged violations 
        of internationally recognized human rights by the Government of 
        Azerbaijan, including--
                    (A) unlawful or arbitrary killings;
                    (B) torture;
                    (C) cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or 
                punishment of detainees;
                    (D) political prisoners;
                    (E) arbitrary arrest or detention;
                    (F) the displacement of ethnic Armenians from 
                Nagorno Karabakh;
                    (G) restrictions on freedom of assembly, 
                association, and movement;
                    (H) pervasive problems with the independence of the 
                judiciary;
                    (I) forced disappearances;
                    (J) serious restrictions on freedom of speech, 
                expression, and the media;
                    (K) severe restrictions on political participation;
                    (L) discrimination against women and gender-based 
                violence;
                    (M) restrictions on religious freedom;
                    (N) serious restrictions on internet freedom;
                    (O) existence of the worst forms of child labor; 
                and
                    (P) destruction of religious and cultural sites.
            (2) A description of the steps that the United States 
        Government has taken--
                    (A) to promote respect for and observance of human 
                rights in Azerbaijan and by the Government of 
                Azerbaijan, including in the context of the conflict 
                with Armenia and Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh);
                    (B) to discourage any practices in Azerbaijan that 
                are inimical to internationally recognized human 
                rights; and
                    (C) to publicly or privately call attention to, and 
                disassociate the United States and any security 
                assistance provided for the Government of Azerbaijan 
                from, any practices described in subparagraph (B).
            (3) An assessment from the Secretary of State, 
        notwithstanding any practices described in paragraph (2)(B), 
        whether extraordinary circumstances exist that necessitate a 
        continuation of security assistance for Azerbaijan.
            (4) If such circumstances exist, a description of the 
        circumstances and the extent to which security assistance 
        should be continued (subject to such conditions as Congress may 
        impose under section 502B of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
        (22 U.S.C. 2304)).
            (5) Other information, including--
                    (A) an assessment from the Secretary of State of 
                the likelihood that United States security assistance 
                (as defined in section 502B(d) of the Foreign 
                Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2304(d))) has or will 
                be used in support of Azerbaijani activities related to 
                the conflict with Armenia, aggression against Nagorno-
                Karabakh (Artsakh), and the blockade of the Lachin 
                Corridor;
                    (B) a description and assessment of the actions 
                that the United States Government is taking to ensure 
                end use monitoring protocols for all weapons sold or 
                transferred to Azerbaijan;
                    (C) an assessment of the impact of United States 
                assistance provided to Azerbaijan over the past 10 
                years has had on the balance of power between 
                Azerbaijan and Armenia, and on efforts to negotiate a 
                durable and lasting peace settlement between Armenia 
                and Azerbaijan;
                    (D) a description of the United States Government's 
                efforts in Azerbaijan to adhere to the prohibitions in 
                section 620M of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 
                U.S.C. 2378d) and section 362 of title 10, United 
                States Code, against the provision of foreign 
                assistance to security units against which there are 
                credible allegations of human rights violations 
                (commonly referred to as the ``Leahy laws'') and to 
                ensure that no units implicated in gross violations of 
                human rights receive United States assistance, 
                including information on which units have been rejected 
                in the Leahy vetting process;
                    (E) an assessment from the Secretary of State of 
                whether ethnic cleansing or genocidal acts have taken 
                or are taking place in Nagorno-Karabakh; and
                    (F) a determination, within 30 days of passage of 
                this resolution, as to whether Azerbaijani officials 
                found to be responsible for or complicit in, or to have 
                directly or indirectly engaged in, human rights abuses 
                listed in paragraph (1) meet the criteria for sanctions 
                and--
                            (i) a description of any actions that the 
                        United States Government is taking to implement 
                        sanctions, including sanctions under the Global 
                        Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (22 
                        U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) and section 7031(c) of 
                        the Department of State, Foreign Operations, 
                        and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2020 
                        (division G of Public Law 116-94; 133 Stat. 
                        2864), to hold accountable Azerbaijani 
                        officials responsible for gross violations of 
                        human rights or significant corruption; or
                            (ii) a justification for why sanctions have 
                        not been imposed on individuals found to meet 
                        the criteria for sanctions under existing law.
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