[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 28 (Tuesday, February 13, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H560-H564]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
IGO ANTI-BOYCOTT ACT
Mr. LAWLER. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 3202) to prohibit any official action to recognize or
normalize relations with any Government of Syria that is led by Bashar
al-Assad, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 3202
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Assad Regime Anti-
Normalization Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. MODIFICATIONS TO THE CAESAR SYRIA CIVILIAN PROTECTION
ACT.
(a) Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act.--Section 7412 of
the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019 (title LXXIV
of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year
2020; 22 U.S.C. 8791 note) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``the President shall
impose'' and all that follows through the end of the
paragraph and inserting ``the President--''
``(A) shall impose the sanctions described in subsection
(b) with respect to a foreign person that the President
determines--
``(i) knowingly engages, on or after such date of
enactment, in an activity described in paragraph (2);
``(ii) is an adult family member of a foreign person
described in clause (i), unless the President determines
there is clear and convincing evidence that such adult family
member has disassociated themselves from the foreign person
described in such clause and has no history of helping such
foreign person conceal assets; or
``(iii) is owned or controlled by a foreign person
described in clause (i) or (ii); and
``(B) may impose the sanctions described in subsection (b)
with respect to a foreign person that the President
determines knowingly provides, on or after such date of
enactment, significant financial, material, or technological
support to a foreign person engaging in an activity described
in any of subparagraphs (B) through (H) of paragraph (2);''.
(B) in paragraph (2)--
(i) in subparagraph (A)--
(I) by amending clause (i) to read as follows:
``(i) the Government of Syria (including any entity owned
or controlled by the Government of Syria), a senior political
figure of the Government of Syria, a member of the People's
Assembly of Syria, or a senior foreign political figure (as
such term is defined
[[Page H561]]
in section 101.605 of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations)
of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party of Syria, including any
such senior foreign political figure who is--
``(I) a member of the Central Command, Central Committee,
or Auditing and Inspection Committee of such Party; or
``(II) a leader of a local branch of such Party;'';
(II) in clause (ii), by striking ``; or'' and inserting a
semicolon;
(III) in clause (iii), by striking the semicolon and
inserting ``; or''; and
(IV) by adding at the end the following new clause:
``(iv) Syria Arab Airlines, Cham Wings, or any foreign
person owned or controlled by Syria Arab Airlines or Cham
Wings;'';
(ii) by amending subparagraph (C) to read as follows:
``(C) knowingly sells or provides aircraft or spare
aircraft parts--
``(i) to the Government of Syria; or
``(ii) for or on behalf of the Government of Syria to any
foreign person operating in an area directly or indirectly
controlled by the Government of Syria or foreign forces
associated with the Government of Syria;'';
(iii) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``; or'' and
inserting a semicolon;
(iv) in subparagraph (E)--
(I) by striking ``construction or engineering services''
and inserting ``construction, engineering, or commercial
financial services''; and
(II) by striking the closing period and inserting a
semicolon; and
(v) by adding at the end the following new subparagraphs:
``(F) purposefully engages in or directs--
``(i) the diversion of goods (including agricultural
commodities, food, medicine, and medical devices), or any
international humanitarian assistance, intended for the
people of Syria; or
``(ii) the dealing in proceeds from the sale or resale of
such diverted goods or international humanitarian assistance,
as the case may be;
``(G) knowingly, directly or indirectly, engages in or
attempts to engage in, the seizure, confiscation, theft, or
expropriation for personal gain or political purposes of
property, including real property, in Syria or owned by a
citizen of Syria;
``(H) knowingly, directly or indirectly, engages in or
attempts to engage in a transaction or transactions for or
with such seized, confiscated, stolen, or expropriated
property described in subparagraph (G); or
``(I) knowingly provides significant financial, material,
or technological support to a foreign person engaging in an
activity described in subparagraph (A).''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
``(4) Transaction defined.--For purposes of the
determination required by subparagraph (a)(2)(A), the term
`transaction' includes in-kind transactions.
``(5) Additional definitions.--In this section:
``(A) Commercial financial services.--The term `commercial
financial services' means any transaction between the
Government of Syria and a foreign bank or foreign financial
institution operating in an area under the control of the
Government of Syria that has a valuation of more than
$5,000,000.
``(B) Financial institution.--The term `financial
institution' means a financial institution specified in any
of subparagraphs (A) through (K), (M), (N), (P), (R), (T),
(Y), or (Z) of section 5312(a)(2) of title 31, United States
Code.
``(6) Significant transaction clarified.--In this section,
the term `significant transaction' includes any natural gas,
electricity, or other energy-related transaction.''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(c) Congressional Requests.--Not later than 120 days
after receiving a request from the chairman and ranking
member of one of the appropriate congressional committees
with respect to whether a foreign person knowingly engages in
an activity described in subsection (a)(2) the President
shall--
``(1) make the determination specified in subsection (a)(1)
with respect to that foreign person; and
``(2) submit to such chairman and ranking member that
submitted the request a report with respect to such
determination that includes a statement of whether the
President has imposed or intends to impose the sanctions
described in subsection (b) with respect to that foreign
person.''.
(b) Extension of Sunset.--Section 7438 of the Caesar Syria
Civilian Protection Act of 2019 is amended by striking ``the
date that is 5 years after the date of the enactment of this
Act'' and inserting ``December 31, 2032''.
(c) Determinations With Respect to Syria Trust for
Development.--
(1) Determinations.--Not later than 120 days after the
enactment of this Act, the President shall--
(A) determine whether the nonprofit organization chaired by
Asma Al-Assad, the First Lady of Syria, known as the ``Syria
Trust for Development'' meets the criteria for the imposition
of sanctions--
(i) under section 7412(a) of the Caesar Syria Civilian
Protection Act of 2019, as amended by subsection (a);
(ii) under Executive Order 13894 (84 Fed. Reg. 55851;
relating to blocking property and suspending entry of certain
persons contributing to the situation in Syria); or
(iii) by nature of being owned or controlled by a person
designated under any executive order or regulation
administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control; and
(B) submit to the appropriate congressional committees each
such determination, including a justification for the
determination.
(2) Form.--The determination under paragraph (1)(B) shall
be submitted in unclassified form, but the justification
specified in such paragraph may be included in a classified
annex. The unclassified determination shall be made available
on a publicly available website of the Federal government.
(3) Sanctions relating to importation of goods unchanged.--
Paragraph (1) may not be construed to create any new
authorities or requirements to impose sanctions on the
importation of goods.
(4) Appropriate congressional committees defined.--In this
section, the term ``appropriate congressional committees''
means--
(A) the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee on
Foreign Affairs, and the Committee on Financial Services of
the House of Representatives; and
(B) the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee on
Foreign Relations and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and
Urban Affairs of the Senate.
(d) Findings on Applicability With Respect to Syrian Arab
Airlines, Cham Wings Airlines, and Related Entities.--
Congress finds the following:
(1) In 2013, the President identified Syrian Arab Airlines
as a blocked instrumentality or controlled entity of the
Government of Syria and concurrently sanctioned Syrian Arab
Airlines pursuant to Executive Order 13224 for acting for or
on behalf of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force
of Iran.
(2) In 2016, the President sanctioned Syria-based Cham
Wings Airlines pursuant to Executive Order 13582 for having
materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial,
material, or technological support for, or goods or services
in support of, the Government of Syria and Syrian Arab
Airlines.
(3) Section 7412(a)(2)(A)(iii) of the Caesar Syria Civilian
Protection Act of 2019 (22 U.S.C. 8791 note) mandates the
application of sanctions against any foreign person that
``knowingly provides significant financial, material, or
technological support to, or knowingly engages in a
significant transaction with . . . a foreign person subject
to sanctions pursuant to the International Emergency Economic
Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) with respect to Syria or
any other provision of law that imposes sanctions with
respect to Syria,'', which applies to airport service
providers outside of Syria.
(e) Severability.--If any provision of this Act, or the
application of such provision to any person or circumstance,
is found to be unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act,
or the application of that provision to other persons or
circumstances, shall not be affected.
SEC. 3. PROHIBITION OF RECOGNITION OF ASSAD REGIME.
(a) Statement of Policy.--It is the policy of the United
States--
(1) not to recognize or normalize relations with any
Government of Syria that is led by Bashar al-Assad due to the
Assad regime's ongoing crimes against the Syrian people,
including failure to meet the criteria outlined in section
7431(a) of the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019;
(2) to actively oppose recognition or normalization of
relations by other governments with any Government of Syria
that is led by Bashar Al-Assad, including by fully
implementing the mandatory primary and secondary sanctions in
the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019 and
Executive Order 13894; and
(3) to use the full range of authorities, including those
provided under the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of
2019 and Executive Order 13894, to deter reconstruction
activities in areas under the control of Bashar al-Assad.
(b) Prohibition.--In accordance with subsection (a), no
Federal official or employee may take any action, and no
Federal funds may be made available, to recognize or
otherwise imply, in any manner, United States recognition of
Bashar al-Assad or any Government in Syria that is led by
Bashar al-Assad.
SEC. 4. INTERAGENCY STRATEGY TO COUNTER NORMALIZATION WITH
ASSAD REGIME.
(a) Report and Strategy Required.--
(1) Submission.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for 5
years, the Secretary of State (in consultation with the
Secretary of the Treasury, the Administrator of the Drug
Enforcement Administration, and the heads of other
appropriate Federal departments and agencies) shall submit to
the appropriate congressional committees a report and
strategy to describe and counter actions taken or planned by
foreign governments to normalize, engage with, or upgrade
political, diplomatic, or economic ties with the regime led
by Bashar al-Assad in Syria (in this section referred to as
the ``Assad regime'').
(2) Elements.--The elements of the report under paragraph
(1) shall include--
(A) a description of violations of international law and
human rights abuses committed by Bashar al-Assad, the
Government
[[Page H562]]
of the Russian Federation, or the Government of Iran and
progress towards justice and accountability for the Syrian
people;
(B) a full list of diplomatic meetings at the Ambassador
level or above, between the Syrian regime and any
representative of the Governments of Turkey, the United Arab
Emirates, Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Libya, or
Lebanon, respectively;
(C) a list including an identification of--
(i) any single covered transaction exceeding $500,000; and
(ii) any combination of covered transactions by the same
source that, in aggregate, exceed $500,000 and occur within a
single year;
(D) for each identified single transaction or aggregate
transactions, as the case may be, included in the list
described in subparagraph (C), a determination of whether
such transaction subjects any of the parties to the
transaction to sanctions under the Caesar Syria Civilian
Protection Act of 2019, as amended by section 2;
(E) a description of the steps the United States is taking
to actively deter recognition or normalization of relations
by other governments with the Assad regime, including
specific diplomatic engagements and use of economic sanctions
authorized by statutes or implemented through Executive
Orders, including--
(i) the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019 (22
U.S.C. 8791 note);
(ii) the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty
Restoration Act (22 U.S.C. 2151 note);
(iii) the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and
Divestment Act of 2010 (22 U.S.C. 8501 et seq.);
(iv) Executive Order 13894 (84 Fed. Reg. 55851; relating to
blocking property and suspending entry of certain persons
contributing to the situation in Syria);
(v) the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act
(22 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.);
(vi) the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions
Act (22 U.S.C. 9401 et seq.); and
(vii) the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (21
U.S.C. 1901 et seq.); and
(F) an assessment of how recognition or normalization of
relations by other governments with the Assad regime impacts
the national security of the United States, prospects for
implementation of the United Nations Security Council
Resolution 2254, prospects for justice and accountability for
war crimes in Syria, and the benefits derived by the
Government of the Russian Federation or the Government of
Iran.
(b) Scope.--The initial report required by subsection (a)
shall address the period beginning on January 1, 2021, and
ending on the date of the enactment of this Act, and each
subsequent report shall address the one-year period following
the conclusion of the scope of the prior report.
(c) Form.--Each report under subsection (a) shall be
submitted in an unclassified form, but may contain a
classified annex. The unclassified section of such a report
shall be made publicly available on a website of the United
States Federal Government.
(d) Appropriate Congressional Committees.--In this section,
the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on the
Judiciary, the Committee on Financial Services, the Committee
on Appropriations, and the Permanent Select Committee on
Intelligence of the House of Representatives; and
(2) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on
the Judiciary, the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs, the Committee on Appropriations, and the Select
Committee on Intelligence of the Senate.
(e) Covered Transaction Defined.--In this section, the term
``covered transaction'' means a transaction, including an
investment, grant, contract, or donation (including a loan or
other extension of credit)--
(1) by a foreign person located in Turkey, the United Arab
Emirates, Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Libya, or
Lebanon; to
(2) a recipient in any area of Syria held by the Assad
regime.
SEC. 5. REPORTS ON MANIPULATION OF UNITED NATIONS BY ASSAD
REGIME IN SYRIA.
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of
this Act, and annually thereafter for 5 years, the Secretary
of State, shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of
the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign
Relations of the Senate a report on the manipulation of the
United Nations by the regime led by Bashar al-Assad in Syria
(in this section referred to as the ``Assad regime''),
including--
(1) a description of conditions, both explicit and
implicit, set by the Assad regime with respect to United
Nations operations in Syria including with respect to
implementing partners, hiring practices, allocation of grants
and contracts, and procurement of goods and services;
(2) a description of the extent to which the United Nations
has rejected or otherwise opposed any of the conditions
described in paragraph (1);
(3) an identification of officials or employees of the
United Nations (including funds, programs and specialized
agencies of the United Nations) with ties to the Assad
regime, including family ties, or persons designated for
sanctions by United Nations donor countries;
(4) a full account of access restrictions imposed by the
Assad regime and the overall impact on the ability of the
United Nations to deliver international assistance to target
beneficiaries in areas outside regime control;
(5) a description of ways in which United Nations aid
improperly benefits the Assad regime and its associates in
defiance of basic humanitarian principles;
(6) a description of the due diligence mechanisms and
vetting procedures in place to ensure entities contracted by
the United Nations to ensure goods, supplies, or services
provided to Syria do not have links to the Assad regime,
known human rights abusers, or persons designated for
sanctions by United Nations donor countries;
(7) an identification of entities affiliated with the Assad
regime, including the Syria Trust for Development and the
Syrian Arab Red Crescent, foreign government ministries, and
private corporations owned or controlled directly or
indirectly by the Assad regime, that have received United
Nations funding, contracts, or grants or have otherwise
entered into a formalized partnership with the United
Nations;
(8) an assessment of how the Assad regime sets arbitrary or
punitive exchange rates to extract funding from the United
Nations, as well as the total amount extracted by such means;
(9) an assessment of the degree to which the various forms
of manipulation described in this section has resulted in
compromises of the humanitarian principles of humanity,
neutrality, impartiality, and independence of the United
Nations; and
(10) a strategy to reduce the ability of the Assad regime
to manipulate or otherwise influence the United Nations and
other aid operations in Syria and ensure United States and
international aid is delivered in a neutral and impartial
manner consistent with basic humanitarian principles.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Lawler) and the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Manning)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York.
General Leave
Mr. LAWLER. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to
include extraneous material on this measure.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mr. LAWLER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 3202, the Assad
Regime Anti-Normalization Act of 2023. I want to begin by thanking my
colleague and friend, Joe Wilson of South Carolina, who is the
chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee's Subcommittee on the Middle
East, North Africa, and Central Asia.
This legislation is critically important. It has been almost 13 years
since Bashar al-Assad unleashed his brutal war on the Syrian people.
Hundreds of thousands of innocent people have died because of the Assad
regime's unrelenting brutality. This is a regime that, with support
from Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah, tortures men, women, and children at
an unthinkable scale.
These crimes are undeniable. We have eyewitnesses, survivor testimony
of Assad's cruelty from Caesar, who was forced to photograph dead
bodies from the Gravedigger, who was forced to dig mass graves for
those who were brutally murdered.
{time} 1700
The Assad regime has repeatedly used chemical weapons against the
Syrian people. Just this past November, a court in France found
sufficient evidence to issue an international arrest warrant for
Assad's complicity in war crimes specifically linked to his use of
chemical weapons.
Assad is a murderer, a war criminal, and the head of a narco-state
now that Syria is a hub for illicit Captagon production and
trafficking. Yet, shockingly, we have seen some countries downplay
these abhorrent crimes against humanity and welcome Assad's Syria back
into the community of nations.
Let me be clear. There can be no normalization with the Assad regime.
This regime will never change, and Assad and his backers' hands are
soaked with the blood of the Syrian people. That is why, today, we are
considering this bill to ensure there is justice for the Syrian people
who continue to suffer under the
[[Page H563]]
Assad regime and his Russian and Iranian backers.
This legislation amends the Caesar Act to ensure full and robust
implementation by the executive branch of mandatory sanctions targeting
the Assad regime and its backers. It also expands the scope of
sanctionable activity to cover more crimes, including stealing
humanitarian aid and property. Further, it codifies United States
policy to oppose recognition of Assad, and it requires a strategy to
counter creeping normalization with Assad by other countries.
This bill also increases transparency around the Assad regime's
manipulation of the U.N. system and theft of U.N. aid meant for the
Syrian people. Also, crucially, this bill reauthorizes the Caesar Act
ahead of that foundational legislative statutory expiration later this
year.
The Syrian people have suffered the brutality of this criminal regime
and its backers for far too long. The world cannot simply excuse Assad
or his backers' crimes because it is convenient. We have seen the
consequences of this play out in Ukraine at devastating cost. We must
hold the regime and its Russian and Iranian backers accountable, and
that is exactly what this bill will do.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
January 30, 2024.
Hon. Jim Jordan,
Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary,
Washington. DC.
Dear Chairman Jordan: Thank you for consulting with the
Foreign Affairs Committee and agreeing to be discharged from
further consideration of H.R. 3202, the Assad Regime Anti-
Normalization Act of 2023, so that the measure may proceed
expeditiously to the House floor.
I agree that your forgoing further action on this measure
does not in any way diminish or alter the jurisdiction of
your committee, or prejudice its jurisdictional prerogatives
on this measure or similar legislation in the future. I would
support your effort to seek appointment of an appropriate
number of conferees from your committee to any House-Senate
conference on this legislation.
I will seek to place our letters on this bill into the
Congressional Record during floor consideration. I appreciate
your cooperation regarding this legislation and look forward
to continuing to work together as this measure moves through
the legislative process.
Sincerely,
Michael T. McCaul,
Chairman.
____
January 11, 2024.
Hon. Michael McCaul,
Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman McCaul: I write regarding H.R. 3202, the
Assad Regime Anti-Normalization Act of 2023. Provisions of
this bill fall within the Judiciary Committee's Rule X
jurisdiction, and I appreciate that you consulted with us on
those provisions. The Judiciary Committee agrees that it
shall be discharged from further consideration of the bill so
that it may proceed expeditiously to the House floor.
The Committee takes this action with the understanding that
forgoing further consideration of this measure does not in
any way alter the Committee's jurisdiction or waive any
future jurisdictional claim over these provisions or their
subject matter. We also reserve the right to seek appointment
of an appropriate number of conferees in the event of a
conference with the Senate involving this measure or similar
legislation.
I ask that you please include this letter in your
committee's report to accompany this legislation or insert
this letter in the Congressional Record during consideration
of H.R. 3202 on the House floor. I appreciate the cooperative
manner in which our committees have worked on this matter,
and I look forward to working collaboratively in the future
on matters of shared jurisdiction. Thank you for your
attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
Jim Jordan,
Chairman.
Ms. MANNING. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume, and I rise in support of H.R. 3202, the Assad Regime Anti-
Normalization Act of 2023.
Madam Speaker, I am proud to support this bipartisan legislation
introduced by my dear friend, the chairman of the Subcommittee on the
Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia, Representative Joe
Wilson of South Carolina.
First, it is with deep sadness that I note that it has been over 13
years since the Syrian people first rose up for their basic rights and
have subsequently endured brutal assaults by Assad's Russian- and
Iranian-backed military year after year. The Assad regime has
unceasingly engaged in a campaign of violence against the Syrian
people, committing what has amounted to countless war crimes and the
most egregious violations of international humanitarian law.
As we consider this bill today, it is critical we acknowledge that
the war has resulted in the deaths of over 600,000 Syrians and more
than 8 million displaced. The regime continues to regularly target
hospitals, schools, and neighborhoods. Hundreds of thousands of Syrians
face bleak prospects for the future.
It is in this context we consider this bill, which responds to moves
by some governments to look past these atrocities and re-admit the
Assad regime into international institutions. The Biden administration
has opposed efforts to reengage with the Assad regime and continues to
highlight ongoing crimes against the Syrian people.
I stand with the administration and those who believe Assad must be
held accountable. I am glad that members of both parties have stood
together to publicly condemn the welcoming of the Assad regime back
into the Arab League.
As we condemn such actions and stand with the Syrian people, I also
support the Biden administration's efforts to provide the Syrian people
with vital, lifesaving humanitarian assistance to assist in the
recovery from multiple earthquakes last year and Assad's continued
military assaults.
Therefore, I support this measure, which I hope will discourage other
states from overlooking Assad's crimes, and which makes it U.S. policy
not to recognize an Assad-led Syrian Government.
This bill also expands targeted sanctions against the Assad regime
while preserving important humanitarian exemptions and provisions.
The bill includes a bipartisan amendment, which passed unopposed in
the committee, that refines the sanctions provisions so as not to
impinge on legitimate humanitarian aid efforts to the Syrian people.
Finally, this bill mandates greater scrutiny of the Assad regime's
diversion of international aid for its own benefit and at the expense
of the Syrian people.
I thank my friend, Representative Wilson, as well as Chairman McCaul
and Ranking Member Meeks for their work on this bill.
Madam Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting
this measure, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. LAWLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from
South Carolina (Mr. Wilson), the chairman of the Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia, and
the author of this bill.
Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Madam Speaker, distinguished graduate
of Columbia College, I am very grateful to be here with Congressman
Mike Lawler.
It has been 13 years since the Syrian revolution, where pro-democracy
demonstrators peacefully gathered to express against the corrupt and
murderous regime of dictator Bashar al-Assad. People carrying roses and
shouting ``peaceful, peaceful'' were met with unspeakable atrocities.
There was merciless scale slaughter, systematic rape, ultimately
chemical warfare used against the people of Syria, as we saw when
President Donald Trump acted so quickly to try to address the
atrocities of chemical warfare. We had the devastating bombardment and
the killing of so many civilians that the United Nations had stopped
counting at over half a million innocent civilians.
Assad did not act alone. His ability to kill opposition and regain
territory was made possible by the support of like-minded war criminals
and kleptocrats like war criminal Putin and the Iranian regime, both of
which benefit from their alliance with Assad.
Assad has displaced over half the population of Syria. That is nearly
10 million people in a country of 20 million. Sadly, families have been
living in refugee camps for over a decade. They have lost their homes,
their businesses, their religious institutions, their schools--multiple
generations had worked together to build such a successful country, as
was Syria.
I am grateful that this bipartisan bill affirms the United States'
policy of non-normalization of the brutal Assad regime. It holds those
seeking to do
[[Page H564]]
business with the unrepentant, mass murderer and drug trafficker,
Bashar al-Assad, accountable.
It also includes comprehensive transparency mechanisms to prevent
U.N. funding from being diverted or stolen to the regime while
including robust protections of humanitarian assistance.
Assad continues his reign of terror against the people of Syria, with
help from war criminal Putin and the regime in Tehran, while
destabilizing the region and trafficking the destructive Captagon drug,
which is now reaching Europe, and with Chinese providing drugs to
Africa to destroy families.
The unconditional welcoming of mass murderer Assad into the Arab
League, which we so appreciate the Arab League itself, was disgraceful.
To do business with Assad is a normalization of death and depravity, in
contrast to the moral standards of American allies who are members of
the Arab League.
The passage of this bill is a testament to the work of the Syrian
Americans, many of whom are survivors of torture at the hands of the
regime. All of them have lost a loved one.
I am grateful to Speaker Mike Johnson, Chairman Mike McCaul,
Ranking Member Greg Meeks, as well as staff, Gabriella Zach, Omar
Hossino, and Stephanie Pendarvis, along with the Syrian-American
patriots who are in the gallery today, who have worked to bring this
bipartisan bill to the floor.
I am also grateful to be working with my good friend, Congresswoman
Kathy Manning of my sister State of North Carolina, and also
Congressman Mike Lawler of New York.
To the Syrian people: You are not forgotten and you will never be
forgotten. Your country has a rich history of democracy. We will
continue to stand for a free and democratic Syria against the dictators
with rule of gun who are invading democracies with rule of law.
Ms. MANNING. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. LAWLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Arkansas (Mr. Hill), a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee and vice
chairman of the Committee on Financial Services.
Mr. HILL. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York for
yielding, and I thank my good friend from South Carolina.
Madam Speaker, I stand in full support of Joe Wilson's good bill to
counter the butcher, Assad. The gentleman from South Carolina and I
spent a great deal in 2023 traveling the Middle Eastern region talking
to our partners in the Arab world, warning them of the consequences of
readmitting Assad back into the Arab League.
While official U.S. policy does not support normalization with Assad,
we have U.S. Government officials, like Brett McGurk and Assistant
Secretary Barbara Leaf, watering down that position of U.S. policy,
encouraging Arab countries to ``get what you can for normalization.''
What did we get?
Madam Speaker, we got more war. The Arab countries said: Let's cut
out Captagon trade and drugs. Let's return refugees from Jordan and
Turkiye and Lebanon back to Syria. Let's eliminate Iranian influence in
Syria.
Madam Speaker, did we get those things?
No.
That is why this bill to counter normalization is so important,
because Syria, for the American people, is a giant aircraft carrier for
terrorism--Israel being attacked from Syria, Iraq being attacked from
Syria, Americans killed because of attacks from Syria.
Madam Speaker, I support Mr. Wilson's bill, and I urge my colleagues
to support it.
Ms. MANNING. Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I am
prepared to close.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. LAWLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
West Virginia (Mr. Mooney).
Mr. MOONEY. Madam Speaker, 13 years ago, the Syrian people took to
the streets demanding basic rights such as freedom of speech, freedom
of democratic elections, things which many Americans, frankly, take for
granted these days.
They also demanded an end to the Assad dictatorship. Assad responded
with extreme brutality, including use of chemical weapons, such as
sarin gas.
I am honored to represent the proud and patriotic Syrian-American
community in West Virginia. I rise today to support this bipartisan
legislation which will hold the Assad regime accountable for its crimes
against the Syrian people.
Unlike President Trump, President Biden has refused to enforce the
congressionally mandated sanctions. For example, President Biden has
allowed countries in the Middle East to normalize relations, such as
waiving sanctions for countries in the region to make energy agreements
with Syria. The Assad regime should not be allowed to normalize, and it
should not be recognized by the United States.
Syrian Americans, like many immigrants, work hard. They come here and
defend their communities. They want peace and freedom around the world,
things we all support. It is important for America to take leadership
in this regard.
My mother fled a Communist country, Cuba, and that country, to this
day, is still oppressed by the Communist brutal dictator there, who
will just beat you up if they disagree with you. This is a good time to
stand in support of the people and freedom and stand up against the
brutal Assad dictatorship.
Ms. MANNING. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume
for the purpose of closing.
We cannot overlook the Assad regime's atrocities against the Syrian
people. Allowing the regime back into international organizations would
do just that.
{time} 1715
I support the administration's work to hold the Assad regime
accountable and believe this bill reinforces the administration's
efforts by making it U.S. policy not to recognize an Assad-led Syrian
Government, discourages other nations from doing so, and expands
targeted sanctions on the regime.
Madam Speaker, I hope my colleagues will join me in supporting H.R.
3202, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. LAWLER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I thank Joe Wilson of South Carolina, the chairman
of the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia Subcommittee of the
Foreign Affairs Committee for his leadership on this bill.
When the Assad regime's war against the Syrian people began, the
American people saw daily images of the regime's cruel abuses. As often
happens, the news cycles change and stories slip from the front page,
and then are rarely covered at all; however, it does not mean that the
regime has changed or reformed or ceased.
The same butchers who gassed and tortured children are still running
Syria, and they are continuing their brutality. It is vital that the
United States maintain its policy of no normalization or we will be
giving a green light to dictators around the world that they can wait
out accountability for their crimes. Attention will shift, and they can
stay in power, and that would be a death knell for human rights and
international norms and standards.
Madam Speaker, I urge all Members to join me in voting for H.R. 3202,
and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from New York (Mr. Lawler) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 3202, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. LAWLER. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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