[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 94 (Thursday, June 7, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S3366]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 2524. Mr. BOOKER submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by 
him to the bill H.R. 5515, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 
2019 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 F of title XII, add the following:

     SEC. 12__. REPORT ON DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE MISSIONS, 
                   OPERATIONS, AND ACTIVITIES IN NIGER AND THE 
                   BROADER REGION.

       (a) Report Required.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense, in 
     consultation as appropriate with the Secretary of State, 
     shall submit to the congressional defense committees, the 
     Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, and the 
     Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives 
     a report on the missions, operations, and activities of the 
     Department of Defense in Niger and the broader region that 
     includes the following:
       (A) A description of the objectives and the associated 
     lines of efforts of the Department in Niger and the broader 
     region, and the benchmarks for assessing progress toward such 
     objectives.
       (B) A description of the timeline for achieving such 
     objectives in Niger and the broader region.
       (C) A justification of the relevance of such objectives in 
     Niger and the broader region to the national security of the 
     United States and to the objectives in the National Defense 
     Strategy.
       (D) A description of steps the Department is taking to 
     ensure that security cooperation in Niger and the broader 
     region is effectively coordinated with the diplomatic and 
     development activities of the Department of State and the 
     United States Agency for International Development.
       (E) A description of the legal, operational, and fiscal 
     authorities relating to the lines of effort of the Department 
     in Niger and the broader region.
       (F) An identification of measures to mitigate operational 
     risk to and increase the preparedness of members of the Armed 
     Forces conducting missions, operations, or activities in 
     Niger or the broader region.
       (G) An assessment of the command and support relationships 
     of United States Africa Command with subordinate component 
     commands, including Special Operations Command Africa.
       (H) An identification and description of each implemented 
     recommendation from the Army Regulation 15-6 investigation 
     report conducted by United States Africa Command regarding 
     the deaths of four soldiers in Niger on October 4, 2017.
       (I) Any other matter the Secretary of Defense determines to 
     be appropriate.
       (2) Scope of report.--For purposes of the report required 
     by paragraph (1), the term ``broader region'' includes 
     Algeria, Libya, Chad, Cameroon, Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, 
     and Mali.
       (b) Form.--The report required by subsection (a)(1) shall 
     be submitted in unclassified form, but may contain a 
     classified annex.
                                 ______