[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 91 (Thursday, June 9, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Page S3769]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 4661. Mr. GRAHAM (for himself and Mr. McCain) submitted an 
amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill S. 2943, to 
authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2017 for military activities 
of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for 
defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military 
personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which 
was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

       At the end of subtitle B of title XII, add the following:

     SEC. 1216. SENSE OF SENATE ON THE CRITICAL IMPORTANCE OF THE 
                   ADVICE OF MILITARY COMMANDERS TO ENSURE FORCE 
                   LEVELS IN AFGHANISTAN AFTER 2016 ARE 
                   CONDITIONS-BASED.

       (a) Finding.--The Senate makes the following findings:
       (1) The United States vowed to hold those responsible for 
     the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks accountable, and 
     seeks to ensure that terrorists never again use Afghan soil 
     to plot an attack on another country.
       (2) Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, 
     the United States decisively expelled the Taliban from 
     control of Afghanistan and sought to promote a multilateral 
     agenda to support the stabilization and reconstruction of 
     Afghanistan by rebuilding its institutions and economy.
       (3) The United States and Afghanistan signed a Bilateral 
     Security Agreement (BSA) on September 30, 2014, that provides 
     for an enduring commitment between the Government of the 
     United States and the Government of Afghanistan to enhance 
     the ability of the Government of Afghanistan to deter 
     internal and external threats against its sovereignty.
       (4) The United States and its coalition partners remain in 
     Afghanistan at the invitation of the National Unity 
     Government.
       (5) Continued political and economic progress in 
     Afghanistan is contingent upon the security of the country 
     and the safety of its people.
       (6) Since the beginning of 2016, senior military 
     commanders, including the current Commander of Resolute 
     Support and United States Forces-Afghanistan, General John W. 
     Nicholson Jr. and the current Commander of United States 
     Central Command, General Joseph L. Votel, the senior military 
     commanders closest to the fight, have testified that the 
     security situation in Afghanistan is deteriorating, and that 
     they support a withdrawal of United States forces from 
     Afghanistan only when conditions warrant.
       (7) In the first three months of 2016, the United Nations 
     reported that Afghanistan documented 600 civilian deaths and 
     1,343 wounded, with almost one-third of the casualties being 
     children.
       (8) The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has 
     metastasized beyond the borders of Iraq and Syria, announcing 
     its formation on January 10, 2015, in Afghanistan where it 
     has carried out bombings, small arms attacks, and kidnappings 
     against civilians and security forces in a number of 
     provinces.
       (b) Sense of Senate.--It is the sense of the Senate that--
       (1) the future trajectory of security and stability in 
     Afghanistan relies significantly upon the continued support 
     of the United States and coalition partners;
       (2) adjustments to United States and coalition force levels 
     in Afghanistan should be conditions-based and made with all 
     due consideration to the assessment and advice of military 
     commanders on the ground;
       (3) decisions on United States and coalition force levels 
     in Afghanistan should take into account the capabilities 
     required to preserve and promote the hard-fought gains 
     achieved over the last 15 years;
       (4) any decisions with regard to changes in United States 
     force levels in Afghanistan should be determined in a timely 
     manner and communicated to allies and partners to afford 
     adequate planning and force generation lead times;
       (5) the United States should continue its efforts to train 
     and advise the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces 
     (ANDSF) in warfighting functions so that they are capable of 
     defending their country and ensuring that Afghanistan never 
     again becomes a terrorist safe-haven for groups like the 
     Taliban, al Qaeda, and the Islamic State of Iraq and the 
     Levant (ISIL);
       (6) the United States should continue, in partnership with 
     the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces and 
     conducting counterterrorism operations to address threats to 
     the national security interests of the United States and the 
     security of Afghanistan;
       (7) the decision of the President in October 2015 to 
     continue the missions of training, advising, and assisting 
     the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces and 
     conducting counterterrorism operations while maintaining the 
     associated United States force level of 9,800 troops in 
     Afghanistan was in the national security interests of the 
     United States; and
       (8) Congress should support the President if the President 
     decides to adjust current plans based on conditions on the 
     ground by continuing robust missions to train, advise, and 
     assist the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces and 
     conduct counterterrorism operations and maintain the 
     necessary level of United States forces in Afghanistan.
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