[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 21 (Friday, February 8, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Page S820]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page S820]]
   URGING THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TO PROVIDE THE UNITED NATIONS-
  AFRICAN UNION MISSION IN SUDAN WITH ESSENTIAL TACTICAL AND UTILITY 
                              HELICOPTERS

  Mr. REID. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee 
on Foreign Relations be discharged from further consideration and the 
Senate now proceed to S. Res. 432.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The bill clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 432) urging the international 
     community to provide the United Nations-African Union Mission 
     in Sudan with essential tactical and utility helicopters.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. BIDEN. Madam President, today, the Senate considers S. Res. 432, 
a bipartisan resolution on Darfur cosponsored by myself, Senator Lugar, 
and a number of other colleagues. This resolution urges the members of 
the international community, including the United States, to step up to 
fill a critical need in equipping the joint United Nations-African 
Union peacekeeping force, namely, 24 tactical and utility helicopters.
  Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has termed these aerial vehicles 
indispensable to allow the peacekeepers to carry out their mission to 
protect civilians. I am pleased to see that several countries may now 
be volunteering to begin to fill this gap. According to press reports, 
the governments of Ethiopia and Bangladesh are discussing the matter 
with the United Nations, and I hope that their contributions can be 
used to help meet this urgent need.
  While I want to acknowledge these potential contributions, I would 
also emphasize that other countries must do the same: the peacekeepers 
in Darfur need the full complement of 24 helicopters. Darfur is the 
size of Texas. These aerial assets are critical. Our resolution urges 
President Bush to personally contact other heads of state on this 
matter. I have been told that senior officials at the White House and 
State Department are continuing to engage in high-level outreach on 
this issue. I respectfully suggest that this outreach should be 
elevated to conversations among chiefs of state. The United States has 
led the world in efforts to provide assistance to the people of Darfur. 
Personally, I believe that we should also lead the world now in 
providing the equipment or personnel that are needed to ensure the 
success of the peacekeeping mission. Certainly, collectively, members 
of the United Nations should do so.
  Mr. REID. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to 
reconsider be laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate, 
and that any statements relating to this matter be printed in the 
Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 432) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 432

       Whereas, on August 30, 2006, the United Nations Security 
     Council approved United Nations Security Council Resolution 
     1706, providing that the existing United Nations Mission in 
     Sudan (UNMIS) ``shall take over from [the African Mission in 
     Sudan (AMIS)] responsibility for supporting the 
     implementation of the Darfur Peace Agreement upon the 
     expiration of AMIS' mandate but in any event no later than 31 
     December 2006'';
       Whereas, on July 31, 2007, the United Nations Security 
     Council approved United Nations Security Council Resolution 
     1769 reaffirming Resolution 1706 and stating that the 
     Security Council ``[d]ecides . . . to authorise and mandate 
     the establishment . . . of an AU/UN Hybrid operation in 
     Darfur (UNAMID) . . . [and] [d]ecides that UNAMID, which 
     shall incorporate AMIS personnel and the UN Heavy and Light 
     Support Packages to AMIS, shall consist of up to 19,555 
     military personnel, including 360 military observers and 
     liaison officers, and an appropriate civilian component 
     including up to 3,772 police personnel and 19 formed police 
     units comprising up to 140 personnel each'';
       Whereas, on December 31, 2007, the United Nations-African 
     Union hybrid mission formally assumed control of peacekeeping 
     operations in Darfur, but did so with only approximately 
     9,000 troops and police on the ground, far short of both the 
     authorized and necessary levels;
       Whereas the Government of Sudan continues to obstruct 
     implementation of Security Council Resolutions 1706 and 1769 
     in several respects, including by refusing to conclude a 
     Status of Forces Agreement or to cooperate on issues such as 
     the force composition, the authorization of night flights, 
     customs clearance, land access, and visas for staff;
       Whereas, on January 7, 2008, uniformed elements of the army 
     of Sudan attacked a clearly marked UNAMID supply convoy, 
     severely wounding a Sudanese civilian driver;
       Whereas rebels, militias, government forces, bandits, and 
     others continue to prey upon the people of Darfur and upon 
     humanitarian workers, increasing the urgency of both 
     deploying the full complement of peacekeepers and police and 
     of reaching a lasting political settlement;
       Whereas the preliminary results of a United Nations 
     assessment entitled the ``Food Security and Nutrition 
     Assessment of the Conflict-Affected Population of Darfur 
     (August/September 2007)'' reveal that global acute 
     malnutrition in Darfur increased in 2007, exceeding emergency 
     levels in some regions;
       Whereas the United Nations-African Union Mission in Sudan 
     has been hampered not only by obstruction by the Government 
     of Sudan and other obstacles to peace in the region, but by 
     the failure of the international community to commit the 
     resources, equipment, and personnel needed to carry out the 
     peacekeeping mission, most notably the failure to provide 
     critically needed aviation and transportation assets;
       Whereas the United Nations-African Union Mission in Sudan 
     needs, among other critical mobility capabilities that have 
     not been met, 18 utility helicopters and 6 tactical 
     helicopters and crews;
       Whereas, in a report to the Security Council dated December 
     24, 2007, the Secretary-General termed these helicopters 
     indispensable and stated that ``UNAMID must be capable of 
     rapid mobility over large distances, especially over terrain 
     where roads are the exception. Without the missing 
     helicopters, this mobility--a fundamental requirement for the 
     implementation of the UNAMID mandate--will not be 
     possible.'';
       Whereas a large number of countries possess the military 
     assets that could help to fulfill this requirement;
       Whereas the United States continues to lead the world in 
     its contributions to efforts to end the genocide in Darfur, 
     including by providing more than $4,500,000,000 since 2004 in 
     response to the Darfur crisis;
       Whereas continued failure on the part of the international 
     community to take all steps necessary to generate, deploy, 
     and maintain an effective United Nations-African Union hybrid 
     peacekeeping force will result in the continued loss of life 
     and further degradation of humanitarian infrastructure in 
     Darfur; and
       Whereas it would be inexcusable for the international 
     community to allow an authorized peacekeeping mission 
     intended to help bring an end to genocide and its effects to 
     founder or be compromised because of a failure to commit 
     critical elements, such as the 24 helicopters needed to meet 
     the critical mobility capabilities of the United Nations-
     African Union Mission in Sudan: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) urges the members of the international community, 
     including the United States, that possess the capability to 
     provide the tactical and utility helicopters needed for the 
     United Nations-African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur 
     to do so as soon as possible; and
       (2) urges the President to intervene personally by 
     contacting other heads of state and asking them to contribute 
     the aircraft and crews for the Darfur mission.

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