S.Amdt. 2532

SA 2532. Mr. MENENDEZ submitted an amendment intended to be proposed
to amendment SA 2282 submitted by Mr. Inhofe (for himself and Mr.
McCain) and intended to be proposed to the bill H.R. 5515, to authorize
appropriations for fiscal year 2019 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 subtitle G of title XII, add the following:

SEC. 12__. STRATEGY AND REPORT ON UNITED STATES SUPPORT FOR
SECURITY AND STABILITY IN THE SAHEL-MAGHREB.

(a) Strategy.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of
State, and the Administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development shall jointly develop an integrated
strategy to support security and stability in the Sahel-
Maghreb.
(2) Elements.--The strategy required under paragraph (1)
shall include the following:
(A) Clear goals and measurable benchmarks to measure
security and stability.
(B) Funding requirements.
(C) Plans for enhancing coordination among United States
and international partners and agencies to plan and implement
counterterrorism and countering violent extremism assistance
and development cooperation programs so as to improve
coordination among donors in the Sahel-Maghreb.
(D) A specific strategy on Mali that--
(i) details the goals, aims, and objectives of United
States engagement in Mali;
(ii) describes specific actions and efforts the Department
of Defense, the Department of State, the United States Agency
for International Development, and other relevant United
States agencies will take between the date of the enactment
of this Act and December 2020, relating to--

(I) sustained, high level diplomatic engagement with Mali,
the African Union, and relevant allies and partners in
Europe, the Middle East, and elsewhere;
(II) coordination with traditional and nontraditional
donors on security assistance provided to the G-5 Sahel Joint
Force and to G-5 member countries bilaterally;
(III) support for the implementation of the 2015 peace
agreement;
(IV) proposals under consideration for resumption of United
States security assistance programs and activities;
(V) United States support for the activities of the G-5
Sahel Joint Force and the Sahel Alliance in Mali;
(VI) prevention of mass atrocities;
(VII) plans to enhance and expand support for democracy and
governance activities including support for electoral reforms
and support for elections; and
(VIII) plans of the United States Agency for International
Development for developing a flexible approach for
implementing programs such as access to justice, anti-
corruption, civil society strengthening, countering violent
extremism, conflict resolution and mitigation, and
decentralization in unstable areas of Mali, including
northern and central Mali.

(E) A specific strategy for Niger that--
(i) details the goals, aims, and objectives of United
States engagement in Niger; and
(ii) relays specific actions and efforts the Department of
Defense, the Department of State, the United States Agency
for International Development, and other relevant United
States agencies will take between the date of enactment of
this Act and December 2020, relating to ensuring an
appropriate balance between engagements in defense,
diplomacy, and development, including--

(I) plans for fully staffing embassy and United States
Agency for International Development positions in Niger, with
a specific focus on a building a robust public diplomacy
team;
(II) an assessment of the utility of and plans for standing
up an independent United

[[Page S3369]]

States Agency for International Development mission;
(III) a robust plan for increased activities and funding to
counter violence extremism and for conflict prevention and
mitigation;
(IV) enhanced support for economic opportunity with a focus
on youth employment; and
(V) increased support for democracy and governance,
including support for strengthening civil society and
elections preparations.

(b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense and the
Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate committees
of Congress a report that details the strategy developed
under subsection (a) and includes a description of specific
diplomatic actions, including United States Government-funded
programs and activities, to advance peace and security,
counter terrorism, increase economic growth and investment,
promote democracy and good governance, and support
development in the Sahel-Maghreb.
(c) Requirement for a Security Sector Review.--Prior to the
resumption of security sector activities authorized by this
Act or any other Act of Congress, the Secretary of Defense,
in collaboration with the Secretary of State, shall conduct a
review of the security sector in Mali to better inform
planning and programming by relevant United States Government
agencies.
(d) Appropriate Committees of Congress Defined.--In this
section, the term `` appropriate committees of Congress''
means--
(1) the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on
Foreign Relations of the Senate; and
(2) the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on
Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives.
______