I 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5747 

To authorize the direct provision of defense articles, defense services, and 

related training to the Kurdistan Regional Government, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 20, 2014 

Mr. ROYCE (for himself, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. ROHRABACHER, Mr. DEUTCH, Ms. 

ROS-LEHTINEN, Ms. GABBARD, Mr. MCCAUL, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. 

KINZINGER of Illinois, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. POE of Texas, Ms. MENG, Mr. 

FRANKS of Arizona, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. HOLDING, Mr. TURNER, Mr. 

CHABOT, Mr. DESANTIS, Mr. COOK, Mr. CLAWSON of Florida, Mr. DIAZBALART, Mr. DUNCAN of South Carolina, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. FORTENBERRY, and Mr. FITZPATRICK) introduced the following bill; which was 

referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

A BILL 

To authorize the direct provision of defense articles, defense 

services, and related training to the Kurdistan Regional 

Government, 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, 

3 SECTION 1. FINDINGS. 

4 Congress finds the following: 

5 (1) Since 2011, the terrorist group now known 

6 as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), 

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1 has rapidly expanded, now possessing greater fund2 ing, more personnel, and heavier weapons than any 

3 other terrorist force. 

4 (2) ISIL has threatened to continue attacking 

5 United States persons and interests and has an 

6 apocalyptic vision for a larger confrontation with the 

7 United States and its allies in the Middle East. 

8 (3) According to the United States intelligence 

9 community, approximately 20,000 to 30,000 ISIL 

10 fighters operate in Iraq and Syria, an estimated 

11 3,000 of which are believed to have western pass12 ports. 

13 (4) ISIL finances itself through looting, smug14 gling, taxes, oil sales, kidnapping, and human traf15 ficking. 

16 (5) According to United States officials, ISIL 

17 captured approximately 1,500 Humvees, a number 

18 of other modern armored vehicles and transport 

19 trucks, over 50 long-range Global Positioning Sys20 tem (GPS)-guided artillery pieces, a substantial 

21 number of artillery shells, a large quantity of small 

22 arms, approximately 4,000 heavy machine guns, and 

23 other weapons from the Iraqi Security Forces in 

24 June 2014, and has also reportedly captured a nummstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with BILLS

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1 ber of other weapons and vehicles from Bashar al2 Assad’s forces in Syria. 

3 (6) The rapidly deteriorating humanitarian sit4 uation in Iraq caused by ISIL advances in Iraq and 

5 Syria has resulted in approximately 1,500,000 refu6 gees and internally displaced people from Syria and 

7 Iraq taking refuge in the Iraqi Kurdistan region. 

8 The Kurdistan Regional Government is facing a hu9 manitarian and budget crisis while defending itself 

10 from ISIL. 

11 (7) The Kurdistan Regional Government 

12 (KRG) is the democratically elected government of 

13 the Kurdistan Region in Iraq, and Iraqi Kurds have 

14 been a reliable and stable partner of the United 

15 States. 

16 (8) The Iraqi constitution guarantees the right 

17 of Iraqi regions, such as Iraqi Kurdistan, to main18 tain ‘‘internal security forces for the region such as 

19 police, security forces, and guards of the region’’. 

20 (9) The Kurdish Peshmerga forces are officially 

21 organized under the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs 

22 and commanded by the Minister of Peshmerga, who 

23 reports to the President of the Kurdistan Regional 

24 Government. 

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1 (10) ISIL has positioned its forces along a 650- 

2 mile border with the Kurdistan Regional Govern3 ment’s Peshmerga forces. 

4 (11) ISIL has employed captured armored vehi5 cles, long-range artillery, and heavy weapons in at6 tacking thinly stretched Kurdish forces along the 

7 border. 

8 (12) United States airstrikes against ISIL tar9 gets have helped stall the terrorist organization’s ad10 vance on territory held by Kurdish forces, but have 

11 not proven to be militarily decisive against ISIL. 

12 (13) The United States and its allies have pro13 vided the resupply of various small arms and train14 ing to Peshmerga forces since June 2014. 

15 (14) Such resupply efforts, to comply with 

16 United States law, must be approved and coordi17 nated through the Government of Iraq. In the initial 

18 phase of the resupply effort, the Government of Iraq 

19 constrained and delayed the emergency supply of 

20 weapons to the Kurdistan Regional Government. 

21 (15) The Peshmerga forces lack battle-ready ar22 mored vehicles and the ability to take significant of23 fensive action against ISIL forces, leading to re24 quests for such assistance. 

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1 (16) Armored vehicles, anti-armor weapons, 

2 long-range artillery, and other weapons are con3 sistent with the Kurdistan Regional Government’s 

4 constitutional right to defend itself against the clear 

5 and present danger posed by ISIL. 

6 (17) A strong Peshmerga force is essential to 

7 countering the ISIL threat to Iraq, the region, and 

8 United States interests. 

9 (18) The longer ISIL’s sanctuary remains 

10 largely unchallenged, the more time it will have to 

11 reinforce its positions, and plan attacks against 

12 United States interests. 

13 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

14 It is the sense of Congress that— 

15 (1) defeating the Islamic State in Iraq and the 

16 Levant (ISIL) is critical to maintaining a unified 

17 Iraq in which all faiths and ethnicities are afforded 

18 equal protection and full integration into the Iraqi 

19 government and society; 

20 (2) the people of Kurdistan face an urgent and 

21 deadly threat from ISIL which the Iraqi Security 

22 Forces, of which the Peshmerga are a component, 

23 are currently unable to match in armaments; 

24 (3) any outstanding issues between the Govern25 ment of Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Governmstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with BILLS

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1 ment should be resolved by the two parties expedi2 tiously to allow for a resumption of normal relations; 

3 and 

4 (4) ISIL’s recent advances and continued 

5 growth present an imminent threat to Iraqi 

6 Kurdistan, the rest of Iraq and the Middle East, 

7 and international security. 

8 SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 

9 It shall be the policy of the United States to directly 

10 provide the Kurdistan Regional Government with ad11 vanced conventional weapons, training, and defense serv12 ices, on an emergency and temporary basis, to more effec13 tively partner with the United States and other inter14 national coalition members to defeat the Islamic State in 

15 Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). 

16 SEC. 4. TEMPORARY EMERGENCY AUTHORIZATION OF DE17 FENSE ARTICLES, DEFENSE SERVICES, AND 

18 RELATED TRAINING DIRECTLY TO THE 

19 KURDISTAN REGIONAL GOVERNMENT. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The President should consult with 

21 the Government of Iraq in carrying out the authority pro22 vided in subsection (b). 

23 (b) AUTHORIZATION.— 

24 (1) MILITARY ASSISTANCE.—The President is 

25 authorized to provide defense articles, defense servmstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with BILLS

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1 ices, and related training directly to the Kurdistan 

2 Regional Government for the purpose of supporting 

3 international coalition efforts against the Islamic 

4 State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) or any suc5 cessor group. 

6 (2) DEFENSE EXPORTS.—The President is au7 thorized to issue licenses authorizing United States 

8 exporters to export defense articles, defense services, 

9 and related training directly to the Kurdistan Re10 gional Government. For purposes of processing ap11 plications for such export licenses, the President is 

12 authorized to accept End Use Certificates approved 

13 by the Kurdistan Regional Government. 

14 (3) TYPES OF ASSISTANCE.—Assistance author15 ized under paragraph (1) and exports authorized 

16 under paragraph (2) may include anti-tank and anti17 armor weapons, armored vehicles, long-range artil18 lery, crew-served weapons and ammunition, secure 

19 command and communications equipment, body 

20 armor, helmets, logistics equipment, excess defense 

21 articles and other military assistance that the Presi22 dent determines to be appropriate. 

23 (c) RELATIONSHIP TO EXISTING AUTHORITIES; CON24 DITIONS OF ELIGIBILITY.— 

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1 (1) RELATIONSHIP TO EXISTING AUTHORI2 TIES.—Assistance authorized under subsection 

3 (b)(1) and licenses for exports authorized under sub4 section (b)(2) shall be provided pursuant to the ap5 plicable provisions of the Arms Export Control Act 

6 (22 U.S.C. 2751 et seq.) and the Foreign Assistance 

7 Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.), notwith8 standing any requirement in such applicable provi9 sions of law that a recipient of assistance of the type 

10 authorized under subsection (b)(1) shall be a coun11 try or international organization. 

12 (2) CONDITIONS OF ELIGIBILITY.—In addition 

13 to such other provisions as the President may re14 quire, no defense article, defense service, or related 

15 training may be provided to the Kurdistan Regional 

16 Government under the authority of subsection (b)(1) 

17 or (b)(2) unless the Kurdistan Regional Government 

18 agrees that— 

19 (A) it will not provide any such defense ar20 ticle, defense service, or related training to any21 one who is not an officer, employee, or agent of 

22 the Kurdistan Regional Government, and 

23 (B) it will not use or permit the use of any 

24 such defense article, defense service, or related 

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1 training for purposes other than the purposes 

2 for which it was provided, 

3 unless the consent of the President has first been 

4 obtained. 

5 (d) REPORT.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after 

7 the date of the enactment of this Act, the President 

8 shall submit to the appropriate congressional com9 mittees a report on the following: 

10 (A) The anticipated defense articles, de11 fense services, and related training to be pro12 vided under the authority of subsections (b)(1) 

13 and (b)(2). 

14 (B) A timeline for the provision of such de15 fense articles, defense services, and related 

16 training. 

17 (C) A description of mechanisms and pro18 cedures for end-use monitoring of such defense 

19 articles, defense services, and related training. 

20 (D) How such defense articles, defense 

21 services, and related training would contribute 

22 to the foreign policy and national security of 

23 the United States, as well as impact security in 

24 the region. 

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1 (2) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 

2 ‘‘appropriate congressional committees’’ means— 

3 (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 

4 Committee on Appropriations, and the Com5 mittee on Armed Services of the House of Rep6 resentatives; and 

7 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations, 

8 the Committee on Appropriations, and the 

9 Committee on Armed Services of the Senate. 

10 (e) NOTIFICATION.—The President should provide 

11 notification to the Government of Iraq prior to defense 

12 articles, defense services, or related training being pro13 vided to the Kurdistan Regional Government under the 

14 authority of subsection (b)(1) or (b)(2). 

15 (f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘‘de16 fense article’’, ‘‘defense service’’, and ‘‘training’’ have the 

17 meanings given those terms in section 47 of the Arms Ex18 port Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2794). 

19 (g) TERMINATION.—The authority to provide defense 

20 articles, defense services, and related training under sub21 section (b)(1) and the authority to issue licenses for ex22 ports authorized under subsection (b)(2) shall terminate 

23 on the date that is 3 years after the date of the enactment 

24 of this Act. 

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