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[House Document 106-268]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

                                     

106th Congress, 2d Session - - - - - - - - - - - - House Document 106-
268

 
SIX MONTH PERIODIC REPORT WITH RESPECT TO THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY WITH 
                          RESPECT TO TALIBAN

                               __________

                                MESSAGE

                                  FROM

                   THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

                              TRANSMITTING

   HIS PERIODIC REPORT ON THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY WITH RESPECT TO THE 
                         TALIBAN IN AFGHANISTAN

    July 18, 2000.--Message and accompanying papers referred to the 
     Committee on International Relations and ordered to be printed
To the Congress of the United States:
    As required by section 401(c) of the National Emergencies 
Act, 50 U.S.C 1641(c), and section 204(c) of the International 
Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), 50 U.S.C. 1703(c), I 
transmit herewith a 6-month periodic report on the national 
emergency with respect to the Taliban (Afghanistan) that was 
declared in Executive Order 13129 of July 4, 1999.
                                                William J. Clinton.
    The White House, July 17, 2000.
 President's Periodic Report on the National Emergency With Respect to 
                       the Taliban in Afghanistan

    I hereby report to the Congress on the developments 
concerning the national emergency with respect to the actions 
and policies of the Taliban in Afghanistan that was declared in 
Executive Order 13129 of July 4, 1999. This report is submitted 
pursuant to section 410(c) of the National Emergencies Act, 50 
U.S.C. 1641(c), and section 204(c) of the International 
Emergency Economic Powers Act (``IEEPA''), 50 U.S.C. 1703(c).
    1. On July 4, 1999, I signed Executive Order 13129, 
``Blocking Property and Prohibiting Transactions With the 
Taliban'' (the ``Order'') (64 Fed. Reg. 36759, July 7, 1999). 
The Order blocks all property subject to U.S. jurisdiction in 
which there is any interest of the Taliban. The Order also 
blocks the property and interests in property subject to U.S. 
jurisdiction of persons determined by the Secretary of the 
Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State and the 
Attorney General, (1) to be owned or controlled by or to act 
for or on behalf of the Taliban, or (2) to provide financial, 
material, or technological support for, or services in support 
of, any of the foregoing.
    The Order further prohibits (1) any transaction or dealing 
by a U.S. person or within the United States in property or 
interests in property blocked by the Order, including the 
making or receiving of any contribution of funds, goods, or 
services to or for the benefit of the Taliban or persons 
designated pursuant to the Order; (2) the exportation, 
reexportation, sale, or supply, directly or indirectly, from 
the United States, or by a U.S. person, wherever located, to 
the territory of Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban or to 
the Taliban or persons designated pursuant to the Order of any 
goods, software, technology (including technical data), or 
services; and (3) the importation into the United States of any 
goods, software, technology, or services owned or controlled by 
the Taliban or persons designated pursuant to the Order or from 
the territory of Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban. The 
Order also prohibits any transaction by a U.S. person that 
evades or avoids, or has the purpose of evading or avoiding, or 
attempts to violate, any of the prohibitions of the Order, and 
any conspiracy formed to violate the prohibitions of the Order.
    The Order also directs the Secretary of the Treasury, in 
consultation with the Secretary of State, to authorize 
commercial sales of agricultural commodities and products, 
medicine, and medical equipment for civilian end-use in the 
territory of Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban under 
appropriate safeguards to prevent diversion to military, 
paramilitary, or terrorist or political end-use.
    The term ``the Taliban'' is defined in the Order to mean 
the political/military entity headquartered in Kandahar, 
Afghanistan, that exercises de facto control over the territory 
of Afghanistan described in Section 4(d) of the Order, its 
agencies and instrumentalities, and the Taliban leaders listed 
in the Annex to the Order or designated by the Secretary of 
State, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and 
the Attorney General. The Annex to the Order lists one Taliban 
leader: Mohammed Omar (Amir al-Mumineed [Commander of the 
Faithful]). The Taliban is also known as the ``Taleban,'' 
``Islamic Movement of Taliban,'' ``the Taliban Islamic 
Movement,'' ``Talibano Islami Tahrik,'' and ``Tahrike Islami'a 
Taliban.''
    Section 4(d) of the Order defines the term ``territory of 
Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban'' to include 18 provinces 
of the country of Afghanistan: Kandahar, Farah, Helmund, 
Nimruz, Herat, Badghis, Ghowr, Oruzghon, Zabol, Paktiha, 
Ghazni, Nangarhar, Lowgar, Vardan, Faryab, Jowlan, Balkh, and 
Paktika. The Secretary of State, in consultation with the 
Secretary of the Treasury, has since added the City of Kabul to 
the list of territory of Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban 
(64 Fed. Reg. 58879, November 1, 1999). The territory of 
Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban is also known as the 
``Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,'' in Pashtun as ``de 
Afghanistan Islami Emarat'' and in Dari as ``Emarat Islami-e 
Afghanistan.''
    2. The Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign 
Assets Control (``OFAC''), in consultation with the Departments 
of State and Justice, has added three entities to the list of 
those whose assets are blocked pursuant to Executive Order 
13129. On August 18, 1999, OFAC added Ariana Afghan Airlines 
(f.k.a. Bakhtar Afghan Airlines). On October 22, 1999, OFAC 
added Banke Millie Afghan (a.k.a. Afghan National Bank; a.k.a. 
Bank E. Millie Afghan), and Da Afghanistan Bank (a.k.a. Bank of 
Afghanistan; a.k.a. Central Bank of Afghanistan; a.k.a. The 
Afghan State Bank). These entities have been found to be 
controlled by the Taliban, and to be entities in which the 
Taliban has an interest.
    Additional designations may be made by the Secretary of the 
Treasury, in consultation with Secretary of State and the 
Attorney General. Designations of persons blocked pursuant to 
the Order are effective upon the date of determination by 
theSecretary of the Treasury. Public notice of blocking is effective 
upon the date of filing with the Federal Register, or upon prior actual 
notice.
    On October 15, 1999, the United Nations Security Council 
issued Resolution 1267 that, inter alia, directs member States 
to freeze funds and other financial resources of the Taliban, 
and to prohibit landings and take-offs by Taliban-associated 
flights, effective November 14, 1999.
    3. Since the issuance of Executive Order 13129 OFAC has 
authorized 21 nongovernmental organizations to continue their 
humanitarian relief operations in the territory of Afghanistan 
controlled by the Taliban. In addition, OFAC issued three 
licenses to authorize completion of certain financial 
transactions initiated prior to issuance of the Order, 
completion of certain imports predating the national emergency, 
and certain administrative transactions.
    Since the inception of the program OFAC has continued to 
emphasize to the international banking community in the United 
States the importance of identifying and blocking payments made 
by or on behalf of the Taliban and has worked closely with the 
banks to assure the effectiveness of interdiction software 
systems used to identify such payments. During the current six-
month period 18 transactions that appeared to involve the 
Taliban, totaling nearly $665,000, were interdicted, bringing 
total assets blocked since the inception of the program to 
nearly $250 million. In addition, since the inception of the 
program, 15 funds transfers in which the Taliban has an 
interest have been blocked totaling more than $1.6 million.
    Various enforcement actions and investigations are being 
aggressively pursued. Reports of new violations are being 
scrutinized.
    4. The expenses incurred by the federal government in the 
six-month period from January 4 through July 3, 2000, that are 
directly attributable to the exercise of powers and authorities 
conferred by the declaration of the national emergency with 
respect to the Taliban in Afghanistan are estimated at 
approximately $260,000. Personnel costs were largely centered 
in the Department of the Treasury (particularly in the Office 
of Foreign Assets Control, the Office of the General Counsel, 
and the U.S. Customs Service), the Department of State, and 
components of the Department of Justice.
    5. The Taliban continues to provide Usama bin Ladin and his 
organization, Al-Qaida, with safe haven and security allowing 
him the necessary freedom to operate, despite repeated efforts 
by the United States to persuade the Taliban to expel bin Ladin 
to a third country where he can be brought to justice. The 
Taliban also allows Usama bin Ladin to make repeated public 
threats against the United States, to operate a network of 
terrorist training camps, and to use Afghanistan as a base from 
which to sponsor terrorist acts abroad. For these reasons, the 
Taliban actions pose an unusual threat to international 
security.
    Our information confirms that bin Ladin's organization, 
working with other terrorist groups, continues actively to plan 
attacks on Americans and others. We also have reliable evidence 
that the bin Ladin network seeks to acquire weapons of mass 
destruction, including chemical weapons.
    The international community recognized the need to take 
action against the Taliban for its harboring of Usama bin Ladin 
in the unanimous adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 
1267 which freezes funds and other financial resources of the 
Taliban and prohibits Taliban-associated flights.
    I shall continue to exercise the powers at my disposal to 
apply economic sanctions against the Taliban in Afghanistan as 
long as these measures are appropriate, and will continue to 
report periodically to the Congress on significant developments 
pursuant to 50 U.S.C. 1703(c).

                                
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