[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 106 (Wednesday, June 24, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3622-S3624]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 6510. Mrs. SHAHEEN (for herself and Mr. Cruz) submitted an
amendment intended to be proposed by her to the bill S. 4784, to
authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2027 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 title XII, add the following:
Subtitle F--Reassessing the United States-Tanzania Bilateral
Relationship Act
SEC. 1281. SHORT TITLE.
This subtitle may be cited as the ``Reassessing the United
States-Tanzania Bilateral Relationship Act''.
SEC. 1282. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Tanzania is one of Africa's fastest growing economies
with strong economic growth over the past decade due to the
expansion of key sectors, including agriculture, mining, and
tourism.
(2) Tanzania's reliability as a partner to the United
States is increasingly in question due to ongoing political
repression, violations of religious freedom and freedom of
expression, and persistent barriers to United States
investment.
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(3) The October 29, 2025, general elections were marked by
significant political interference, including ballot
manipulation and vote tabulation irregularities, which
favored incumbent President Samia Suluhu Hassan and other
candidates of Tanzania's parliamentary majority party, Chama
Cha Mapinduzi (CCM).
(4) Leading up to the general elections in Tanzania's
October 29, 2025, election, multiple incidents of political
abductions and disappearances occurred in Tanzania, most
recently the abduction and subsequent disappearance of
Tanzanian Ambassador Humphrey Polepole on October 6, 2025.
(5) A range of actions by the CCM, a political party that
has continuously held a parliamentary majority and controlled
Tanzania's central government since the CCM's formation in
1977, has severely undermined democracy in the country.
(6) The ongoing treason trial of Chadema opposition figure
Tundu Lissu, terrorism charges against Chadema Deputy John
Heche, and charges and detentions of other opposition party
members are politically motivated and intended to prevent
opposition figures from standing for elections.
(7) The Government of Tanzania has engaged in violations of
religious freedom, including the revocation of registration
for religious institutions, harassment, detention, and
attacks against religious leaders, and restrictions on
religious worship and expression.
(8) During mass citizen protests against Tanzania's
fraudulent and illegitimate October 29, 2025, general
elections, the Tanzanian Police and Tanzania Defense Forces
killed hundreds of Tanzanian citizens and endangered the
lives of United States citizens and tourists visiting the
country.
(9) While protestors faced attacks by Tanzanian Security
Forces, the Government of Tanzania imposed an internet
shutdown impacting online connections, communications,
business, and banking, disrupting regional trade and costing
the country an estimated $238,000,000 in the process.
(10) In response to this unprecedented violence and unrest
in Tanzania, the United States Embassy in Tanzania issued a
Security Alert on October 30, 2025, calling on United States
citizens in Tanzania to shelter-in-place.
(11) Following the electoral protests, the Tanzanian
electoral commission released disputed results from the
fraudulent election, declaring President Samia Suluhu Hassan
the winner with 98 percent of the vote.
(12) On December 4, 2025, the Department of State announced
a comprehensive review of the bilateral relationship between
the United States and Tanzania.
SEC. 1283. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) over the last three years, the actions by the
Government of Tanzania--
(A) have subverted democracy;
(B) have blatantly violated citizens' internationally-
recognized human rights;
(C) have disrupted regional trade;
(D) have endangered the safety and security of Tanzanians,
tourists, and the diplomatic community;
(E) place United States national interests in Tanzania at
risk; and
(F) threaten to undermine regional stability and long-term
bilateral cooperation between the United States and Tanzania;
and
(2) the United States--
(A) supports the decision to terminate Tanzania's
Millennium Challenge Corporation threshold program;
(B) expresses solidarity with the people of Tanzania;
(C) recognizes the unprecedented levels of violence
experienced in Tanzania; and
(D) supports calls for an international independent
investigation into the pre- and post-election violence in
Tanzania that will result in those who conducted violence
against Tanzania civilians being held accountable for
violations of internationally-recognized human rights.
SEC. 1284. REVIEW OF THE UNITED STATES RELATIONSHIP WITH
TANZANIA.
(a) Reassessment of the United States-Tanzania Bilateral
Relationship.--The Secretary of State, in coordination with
the Secretary of Defense, the United States Trade
Representative, and the heads of other relevant Federal
agencies, shall conduct a comprehensive reassessment of the
bilateral relationship between the United States and
Tanzania.
(b) Elements.--The reassessment required under subsection
(a) shall--
(1) review efforts taken by the Department of State to
press for the release of religious and opposition leaders
unjustly detained by the Government of Tanzania;
(2) analyze the democratic priorities and trajectory of
Tanzania;
(3) develop a detailed strategy outlining the necessary
democratic reforms needed in Tanzania;
(4) assess United States security assistance to Tanzania to
ensure the Tanzanian Defense Forces and the Tanzanian Police
are reliable partners that--
(A) adhere to Tanzania's constitutionally mandated human
rights and rule of law norms; and
(B) protect the safety of the citizens and all of the
visitors to Tanzania;
(5) evaluate the relationship between the Government of
Tanzania and the Government of the People's Republic of
China, including--
(A) military and security cooperation, including training,
exercises, arms transfers, and cooperation between defense,
intelligence, or law enforcement entities;
(B) economic engagement, including investments, loans, and
financing involving Chinese-state-owned or affiliated
entities, and the impact of such activities on market access,
debt sustainability, and the competitiveness of United States
companies; and
(C) political cooperation with the Government of the
People's Republic of China that seeks to undermine democratic
principles, advance one-party consolidation, and solidify
anti-American and anti-Western sentiment internally and
internationally;
(6) assess the likely impact of the measures authorized
under this subtitle on United States strategic and security
interests in Tanzania and East Africa, including regional
security cooperation, maritime security, and competition with
the People's Republic of China; and
(7) evaluate the relationship between the Government of
Tanzania and the Government of the Russian Federation,
including--
(A) military and security cooperation, including training,
exercises, arms transfers, and cooperation between defense,
intelligence, or law enforcement entities; and
(B) economic engagement activities, including investments,
loans, and financing involving Russian state-owned or
affiliated entities, and the impact of such activities on
market access, debt sustainability, and the competitiveness
of United States companies, with a particular focus on
Russian investment in the energy, critical minerals,
healthcare, and agriculture sectors.
(c) Report.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit a
report to the appropriate committees of Congress that
includes the findings of the reassessment required under
subsection (a).
SEC. 1285. REPORT ON CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS IN LEADERSHIP
POSITIONS IN TANZANIA.
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of
this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit a report to the
appropriate committees of Congress that includes a list of
each foreign person the Secretary determines--
(1) holds a senior position in the Government of Tanzania,
the leadership of Chama Cha Mapinduzi, the Tanzania Police
Force, the Tanzanian People's Defense Force, or the Tanzanian
Intelligence and Security Service; and
(2) is responsible for or complicit in, or has directly or
indirectly engaged in--
(A) ordering, controlling, or otherwise directing
abductions, enforced disappearances, or arbitrary detention
of political opponents, journalists, or civil society actors;
(B) targeting harassment, intimidation, detention, or use
of violence against journalists, media organizations, or
activists to suppress dissent or silence public reporting on
violations of internationally-recognized human rights;
(C) censorship or other restrictions on media, shutdowns or
reductions to internet access, or restrictions on freedom of
expression intended to conceal abuses of internationally-
recognized human rights or to prevent the dissemination of
credible information;
(D) severe violations of religious freedom, including the
persecution of individuals or groups on the basis of
religion, prohibitions or restrictions on religious worship,
assembly, or expression, or acts of violence, coercion, or
discrimination against religious communities;
(E) the use of transnational repression tactics that target
foreign nationals, Tanzanian citizens, and diaspora members
regionally and internationally;
(F) extrajudicial killings, torture, or gross violations of
internationally recognized human rights; or
(G) other actions that violate or undermine internationally
recognized human rights or the civil liberties guaranteed to
Tanzanian citizens under the Constitution of Tanzania.
SEC. 1286. SANCTIONS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 30 days after the
submission of the report required under section 1285, the
President may impose the sanctions described in subsection
(b) with respect to any foreign person described in section
1285(1) that the Secretary of State determines meets the
criteria described in section 1285(2).
(b) Sanctions Described.--The sanctions described in this
subsection are the sanctions authorized under the Global
Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 10101 et
seq.).
SEC. 1287. PROHIBITION ON CERTAIN UNITED STATES ASSISTANCE
AND INVESTMENTS FOR TANZANIA.
(a) Prohibition.--Except as provided in subsections (c) and
(d), assistance, grants, loans, loan guarantees, insurance,
equity investments, and other support provided by the United
States International Development Finance Corporation, the
Export-Import Bank of the United States, or the United States
Trade and Development Agency may not be obligated, expended,
or otherwise made available for any entity in Tanzania.
(b) Termination After Certification.--The prohibition under
subsection (a) shall terminate beginning on the date that is
30 days after the date on which the Secretary of State
submits to the appropriate committees of Congress a written
certification that the Government of Tanzania has--
[[Page S3624]]
(1) taken steps to enact electoral reforms to advance free,
fair, and transparent elections;
(2) demonstrated substantial progress suspending
politically motivated or illegitimate criminal proceedings
and releasing opposition leaders and other individuals who
were detained on politically motivated grounds;
(3) allowed independent, outside investigators to conduct
their own investigation into the October 2025 election
violence;
(4) begun a dialogue with opposition leaders facilitated by
a third-party mediator or entity to discuss reconciliation
efforts and a way forward following the October 2025 election
violence; and
(5) taken steps to ensure the ability of media figures,
journalists, and civil society actors to operate free from
state sponsored violence.
(c) Exceptions.--The prohibition under subsection (a) shall
not apply to--
(1) humanitarian assistance;
(2) health assistance; or
(3) assistance to support democracy, human rights,
governance, and civil society in Tanzania.
(d) Waiver.--The Secretary of State may waive the
prohibition under subsection (a) if the Secretary determines
and notifies the appropriate committees of Congress that the
issuance of such waiver is in the national interests of the
United States.
SEC. 1288. PROHIBITION ON MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORPORATION
FUNDS FOR TANZANIA.
(a) Prohibition.--Except as provided in subsection (b), no
funds authorized to be appropriated or otherwise made
available to carry out section 609 or 616 of the Millennium
Challenge Act of 2003 (22 U.S.C. 7708 and 7715) may be made
available to Tanzania.
(b) Termination After Certification.--The prohibition under
subsection (a) shall terminate beginning on the date that is
30 days after the date on which the Board of Directors of the
Millennium Challenge Corporation, acting through the Chief
Executive Officer of the Millennium Challenge Corporation,
submits to the appropriate committees of Congress a written
certification that the Government of Tanzania has
demonstrated its commitment to just and democratic governance
in accordance with the criteria described in section 607 of
the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 (22 U.S.C. 7706).
SEC. 1289. DEFINED TERM.
In this subtitle, the term ``appropriate committees of
Congress'' means--
(1) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate;
(2) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
(3) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives; and
(4) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives.
SEC. 1290. SUNSET.
This subtitle shall cease to have any force or effect
beginning on the date that is 5 years after the date of the
enactment of this Act.
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