I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5232 
To direct the Secretary of Defense to develop a plan to equip and train 
Iraqi security forces and Kurdish Peshmerga forces, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
AUGUST 18, 2023 
Mr. BACON introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, 
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 direct the Secretary of Defense to develop a plan to 
equip and train Iraqi security forces and Kurdish 
Peshmerga forces, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Iraqi and Kurdish 
Peshmerga Forces Defense Act of 2023’’. 
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SEC. 2. PLAN TO EQUIP AND TRAIN IRAQI SECURITY 
FORCES AND KURDISH PESHMERGA FORCES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than February 1, 2024, 
the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Sec-
retary of State, shall develop a plan of action to equip 
and train Iraqi security forces and Kurdish Peshmerga 
forces to defend against attack by missiles, rockets, and 
unmanned systems. The plan of action shall be based on 
and informed by the results of the report submitted by 
the Secretary of Defense pursuant to section 1237 of the 
James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for 
Fiscal Year 2023 (Public Law 117–263; 136 Stat. 2839). 
(b) MATTERS.—The plan under subsection (a) shall 
include the following: 
(1) The provision of available equipment to Iraq 
and the Iraqi Kurdistan Region to counter the air 
and missile threats addressed in the report, to in-
clude air defense systems, to counter attack by mis-
siles, rockets, and unmanned systems. 
(2) The provision of appropriate training of 
Iraqi security forces and Kurdish Peshmerga forces 
to support fielding and operational employment of 
the available equipment described in paragraph (1). 
(c) IMPLEMENTATION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), not later than 90 days after the date on 
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which the Secretary of Defense develops the plan 
under subsection (a), the Secretary shall commence 
the implementation of such plan. 
(2) WAIVER.—The Secretary of Defense may 
delay implementation of the plan under subsection 
(a) if— 
(A) the Secretary determines such imple-
mentation would adversely impact United 
States stocks and military readiness; 
(B) the Secretary notifies the congressional 
defense committees of the proposed exercise of 
such waiver; and 
(C) a 10-day period has elapsed since such 
notification. 
(3) CONTINUED
CONGRESSIONAL
NOTIFICA-
TION.—If the Secretary of Defense exercises the 
waiver authority under paragraph (2), every 30 days 
during the period beginning on the date of the initial 
notification under paragraph (2)(B) and ending on 
the date on which the implementation of the plan 
under subsection (a) commences, the Secretary shall 
notify the congressional defense committees of the 
exercise of such authority. 
(d) CONGRESSIONAL BRIEFING.—Not later than July 
1, 2024, the Secretary of Defense shall provide to the con-
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gressional defense committees a briefing on progress of 
the air defense equipping and training effort against the 
air and missile threat to Iraq, including in the Iraqi 
Kurdistan Region. 
(e) CONGRESSIONAL DEFENSE COMMITTEES DE-
FINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘congressional defense 
committees’’ has the meaning given that term in section 
101 of title 10, United States Code. 
Æ 
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