I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2060 

To provide oversight over talks between the United States and the Taliban, 

limit the use of funds to reduce the total number of members of the 

Armed Forces serving on active duty who are deployed to Afghanistan 

until certain conditions on the ground are fulfilled, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 3, 2019 

Mr. BANKS (for himself, Ms. CHENEY, Ms. STEFANIK, and Mr. WALTZ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed 

Services, and in addition to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide oversight over talks between the United States 

and the Taliban, limit the use of funds to reduce the 

total number of members of the Armed Forces serving 

on active duty who are deployed to Afghanistan until 

certain conditions on the ground are fulfilled, and for 

other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ensuring a Secure Af3 ghanistan Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress finds the following: 

6 (1) A premature withdrawal of United States 

7 Armed Forces from Afghanistan would result in in8 creased instability, violence, and the loss of human 

9 rights established through the presence of the 

10 United States and its allies over the past 17 years. 

11 (2) It is the objective of the United States Gov12 ernment to ensure a secure and stable Afghanistan 

13 that has the ability to secure its borders, maintain 

14 its own military forces, and prevent the establish15 ment of terrorist safe havens that could be used to 

16 launch attacks against the United States. 

17 (3) A hasty withdrawal without ensuring the 

18 stability of the Government of Afghanistan and its 

19 ability to perform the functions as outlined will im20 pact the security of the United States and its allies. 

21 Additionally, a hasty withdrawal will jeopardize the 

22 tremendous gains made in development and human 

23 rights for the citizens of Afghanistan. 

24 (4) The current talks with the Taliban led by 

25 Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad have ex26 cluded the legitimate Afghan government, despite 


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1 the apparent completion of two ‘‘draft’’ agreements 

2 between the United States and the Taliban. Other 

3 vital constituencies have been excluded as well. 

4 (5) The foreign terrorist organization al Qaeda, 

5 responsible for the attacks of September 11, 2001, 

6 continues to operate in Afghanistan. 

7 (6) The Taliban, which contests or controls ap8 proximately half of Afghanistan, has a strong and 

9 intricate relationship with al Qaeda, and al Qaeda 

10 still sees Afghanistan as a safe haven for its leader11 ship. 

12 (7) The Taliban has not publicly disavowed al 

13 Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, or al Qaeda’s current 

14 leader, Ayman al Zawahiri. The Taliban has also 

15 never apologized for harboring al Qaeda, the 9/11 

16 hijackers, and others responsible for murdering 

17 thousands of American citizens. 

18 (8) The withdrawal of United States Armed 

19 Forces from Afghanistan, a long-standing Taliban 

20 demand, is a key component of the ongoing talks be21 tween the United States and the Taliban. 

22 (9) The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, also 

23 known as ISIS, grew rapidly after the United States 

24 withdrawal of forces from Iraq in 2011. Today, ISIS 


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1 still controls thousands of militants, including in Af2 ghanistan. 

3 (10) According to the administration’s South 

4 Asia strategy, announced by the President in August 

5 2017, ‘‘Conditions on the ground—not arbitrary 

6 timetables—will guide our strategy from now on.’’. 

7 SEC. 3. BRIEFING ON UNITED STATES-TALIBAN OR AFGHAN 

8 TALKS AND ANY EFFECTS ON THE TOTAL 

9 NUMBER OF MEMBERS OF THE ARMED 

10 FORCES SERVING ON ACTIVE DUTY WHO ARE 

11 DEPLOYED TO AFGHANISTAN. 

12 (a) BRIEFING REQUIRED.—The Secretary of State or 

13 the Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation 

14 shall, in coordination with the Secretary of Defense, brief 

15 the appropriate congressional committees regarding talks 

16 with the Afghan government or the Taliban if any such 

17 talks are ongoing, as well as the effects these talks are 

18 having or will have on the posture of United States Armed 

19 Forces in Afghanistan. The briefing may be provided in 

20 unclassified or classified form. 

21 (b) MONTHLY UPDATE.—A briefing described in 

22 paragraph (1) shall occur— 

23 (1) not later than 30 days after any initial dip24 lomatic engagement with the Taliban or the Afghan 

25 Government; 


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1 (2) not later than 30 days after the enactment 

2 of this Act, if such engagement is ongoing on such 

3 date of enactment; and 

4 (3) every 30 days thereafter until the close of 

5 talks. 

6 (c) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DE7 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘appropriate congres8 sional committees’’ means— 

9 (1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 

10 Committee on Armed Services, and the Permanent 

11 Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of 

12 Representatives; and 

13 (2) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the 

14 Committee on Armed Services, and the Select Com15 mittee on Intelligence of the Senate. 

16 SEC. 4. LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS TO REDUCE THE 

17 TOTAL NUMBER OF MEMBERS OF THE 

18 ARMED FORCES SERVING ON ACTIVE DUTY 

19 WHO ARE DEPLOYED TO AFGHANISTAN. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—None of the funds made available 

21 to the Department of Defense for fiscal year 2019 may 

22 be used to reduce the total number of members of the 

23 United States Armed Forces serving on active duty who 

24 are deployed to Afghanistan below 10,000 unless, not later 

25 than 180 days prior to such reduction, the Director of NaVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:31 Apr 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2060.IH H2060

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1 tional Intelligence certifies to the appropriate congres2 sional committees that the Taliban— 

3 (1) including chief and deputy Taliban leaders 

4 who may not have been present at the talks between 

5 the United States and the Taliban, has rejected al 

6 Qaeda by name; 

7 (2) has committed not to— 

8 (A) fight alongside al Qaeda; 

9 (B) have financial ties with al Qaeda; 

10 (C) communicate with al Qaeda; and 

11 (D) have any other affiliation with al 

12 Qaeda; 

13 (3) supports the legitimacy of the Afghan Con14 stitution; 

15 (4) commits to protecting the rights of women 

16 and girls to access public healthcare, hold property, 

17 access education, and have freedom of movement; 

18 (5) commits to stop receiving funds and mili19 tary support from non-Afghan governments or orga20 nizations; 

21 (6) will assist and be an active participant with 

22 the Government of the United States and the Gov23 ernment of Afghanistan in future counterterrorism 

24 operations; 


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1 (7) commits to ensuring that its full member2 ship is subject to the assurances described in this 

3 paragraph; and 

4 (8) commits to turn over to the Government of 

5 Afghanistan any members of the Taliban that violate 

6 any of the assurances described in this paragraph. 

7 (b) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES

8 DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘appropriate con9 gressional committees’’ means— 

10 (1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 

11 Committee on Armed Services, and the Permanent 

12 Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of 

13 Representatives; and 

14 (2) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the 

15 Committee on Armed Services, and the Select Com16 mittee on Intelligence of the Senate. 

Æ 


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