S.Amdt. 3637

SA 3637. Mrs. SHAHEEN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed
by her to the bill S. 2296, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year
2026 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 title XII, add the following:

Subtitle F--Support for Syria

SEC. 1271. SHORT TITLE.

This subtitle may be cited as the ``Syria Support Act of
2025''.

SEC. 1272. STATEMENT OF POLICY AND AUTHORIZATIONS.

(a) In General.--It shall be the policy of the United
States--
(1) to encourage greater engagement with and support for
Syria's authorities in areas of shared national security
interests, including countering the threat of ISIS and
preventing its return, facilitating the return and
reintegration of Syrians, providing security at detention
facilities and camps, preventing Iran and Russia from
reestablishing a presence in Syria, and combating illicit
financial transactions that would benefit terrorists,
criminal gangs, and other sanctioned actors;
(2) to support the Syrian people's aspirations for a
peaceful, prosperous, and democratic future and support a
robust civil society, protection of religious and ethnic
minorities, and accountability for war crimes and atrocities
committed by ISIS, the Assad regime, and other actors;
(3) to support the Syrian people's livelihoods and promote
Syria's economic recovery;
(4) to work in tandem with the United States and its allies
and partners to promote Syria's recovery, spur civil society
and independent media, and mitigate instability;
(5) to adjust bilateral United States foreign assistance,
including security assistance, to recognize and to encourage
continued progress of Syria's authorities towards meeting
United States requirements and recommendations; and
(6) to ensure that Russia, Iran, ISIS, and other terrorist
groups cannot exploit Syria's transition to sew violence and
instability.
(b) Authorizations.--
(1) Urgent humanitarian and recovery needs.--The President
is authorized to provide assistance authorized to be
appropriated or otherwise made available to carry out the
purposes of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C.
2151 et seq.), section 202 of the Food for Peace Act (7
U.S.C. 1722), and subsections (a) through (c) of section 2 of
the

[[Page S5397]]

Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1962 (22 U.S.C. 2601)
to meet the urgent humanitarian and recovery needs of Syrian
refugees and displaced persons, as well as communities
hosting significant numbers of Syrian refugees and displaced
persons, in accordance with established international
humanitarian principles.
(2) Department of state assistance.--The Secretary of State
is authorized to establish a program to--
(A) provide funding to rehabilitate border crossings in
Syria and support counter-narcotics and counterterrorism
operations; and
(B) combat weapons trafficking, particularly by personnel
and ministries linked to the new Government of Syria.
(3) Department of defense assistance.--The Secretary of
Defense is authorized to provide counter-ISIS support and
training assistance to the Government of Syria to--
(A) build the capacity of the government to contribute to
counterterrorism needs in Syria; and
(B) support core United States national security
objectives.

SEC. 1273. SYRIA STABILIZATION AND RECOVERY FUND AUTHORIZED.

(a) In General.--There is authorized to be appropriated to
the Secretary of State $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years
2026, 2027, and 2028, which shall be used to establish the
``Syria Stabilization and Recovery Fund'' for the purpose of
encouraging Syria's recovery, preventing instability, and
allowing the Syrian people to achieve their aspirations for
peace and prosperity, including--
(1) creating fair and effective governance institutions
that represent all Syrians;
(2) increasing the capacity of civil and public servants,
including in the Central Bank and Ministries, to effectively
and transparently administer Syria's state administrative and
governance functions;
(4) supporting community security providers to provide
equitable and effective security services that are supported
by their communities and local governance bodies in the whole
of Syria;
(5) supporting the return and effective reintegration of
displaced Syrians in a manner that bolsters their self-
sufficiency, prevents recidivism, and incentivizes Syrian
communities to accept them;
(6) supporting flexible assistance to Syrians, including to
individuals and political and civil society groups, to
participate in the Syrian political process, including the
Constitutional Dialogue, Reconciliation Committee, and other
mechanisms that advance peaceful transition, dialogue, and
effective citizen participation in the Government of Syria;
(7) supporting Syrian civil society organizations to serve,
represent, and advocate for all Syrians, with a focus on
creating peaceful coexistence in communities and
accountability for government authorities;
(8) promoting accountability, reconciliation, and justice
efforts by providing funding for organizations supporting the
collection, analysis, documentation, and transmission of key
evidence and documentation of atrocities committed in Syria
to and through international organizations, like the
International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism (IIIM),
that support prosecution of individuals responsible for these
crimes;
(9) sustaining critically needed humanitarian and early
recovery assistance; and
(10) stabilizing the Syrian economy.
(b) Initial Report, Annual Report and Briefing.--
(1) Initial report.--Not later than 120 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter through
2029, the Secretary of State shall provide to the appropriate
congressional committees a report and accompanying briefing
that describes--
(A) the state of Syria's transition, including its progress
towards meeting counterterrorism and counternarcotics goals
and facilitating destruction of chemical weapons, building
effective and fair state institutions, supporting
transitional justice and accountability measures related to
war crimes and atrocities committed by the former regime and
ISIS, increasing transparency and adopting international best
practices in the banking sector, safeguarding and protecting
all Syrians, ensuring Syrians are able to organize and freely
petition the government around societal and political issues,
setting a clear path towards democratic elections, and
towards keeping peaceful relations with Syria's neighbors,
namely Israel; and
(B) how United States foreign assistance is funding
programs to support progress towards achieving such
benchmarks.
(2) Form of report.--The report required under paragraph
(1) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include
a classified annex.

SEC. 1274. REPORT ON THE IMPACT OF UNITED STATES ASSISTANCE
CUTS.

(a) Report Required.--Not later than 60 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall
submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report
that describes the foreign assistance strategy of the United
States in support of United States Syria policy and provides
comprehensive details on foreign assistance programs
(including humanitarian and nonhumanitarian efforts) inside
Syria paused or canceled since January 2025.
(b) Elements.--The report required under subsection (a)
shall include, at a minimum, the following elements:
(1) A comprehensive list of all United States foreign
assistance programs paused or cancelled since January 20,
2025, and enumeration of the scope of these programs and
impacts to United States foreign policy and national security
objectives, as well as a clear justification for their
termination of each effort and how it fits into a
comprehensive Syria strategy.
(2) If any new programs exist that fulfill this scope, a
listing of the programs.
(3) A description of efforts to leverage international
donors, multilateral organizations, charities or other
external funders to fill gaps, where they exist.
(4) An accounting of all sustained and ongoing humanitarian
and foreign assistance programs inside Syria, including a
comprehensive description of each project, any supporting
organizations, relevant details related to funding,
performance metrics, progress towards meeting United States
objectives, and other relevant details, as needed.

SEC. 1275. STRATEGY ON ISIS-RELATED DETAINEE AND DISPLACEMENT
CAMPS IN SYRIA.

Section 1262 of the National Defense Authorization Act for
Fiscal Year 2024 (Public Law 118-31) is amended--
(1) in subsection (e)(1), by inserting ``, and annually
thereafter through January 2029,'' after ``Not later than 180
days after the date of the enactment of this Act''; and
(2) in subsection (f)(1)--
(A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking
``January 31, 2025'' and inserting ``January 31, 2029''; and
(B) in subparagraph (A), by striking clause (ii) and
inserting the following:
``(ii) an assessment of the status of all United States
efforts, including via foreign assistance, to encourage and
facilitate repatriation and reintegration of all individuals
from such camps, consistent with all relevant domestic and
applicable international laws;''.

SEC. 1276. STRATEGY FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH SYRIAN AUTHORITIES
AND FOR EVALUATING SECURITY AT THE UNITED
STATES MISSION.

(a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the United States should take measures to expand its
engagement with Syrian authorities in support of mutual
national security interests, such as combating terrorism,
eliminating chemical weapons, and mitigating Captagon
smuggling; and
(2) the Department of State should take measures to
evaluate and mitigate known security vulnerabilities at the
United States mission in Damascus in support of eventually
reopening the embassy compound for official usage.
(b) Report Required.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 60 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, and every 180 days thereafter
until January 1, 2029, the Secretary of State shall submit to
the appropriate congressional committees a report that
describes the strategy of the United States to establish and
sustain deepened engagement with Syrian authorities and
assesses in detail the security conditions at the United
States mission in Damascus and any known security
preparations to re-establish operations on the compound.
(2) Elements.--The report required under paragraph (1)
shall include, at a minimum, the following elements:
(A) A strategy to strengthen and sustain broader United
States engagement with Syrian authorities, which includes
policy objectives, staffing plans domestically and overseas,
regional engagement efforts, and efforts to engage Syrians,
including activists, political groups, and civil society
organizations.
(B) A detailed accounting of progress made on the
engagement strategy, including meetings, travel, staffing
patterns and changes, and notable gaps or areas where
additional engagement is needed.
(C) A comprehensive assessment of security conditions at
the United States mission in Damascus, any notable changes or
progress made towards hardening security, and any progress
towards re-establishing a permanent presence or re-opening
the embassy.

SEC. 1277. REPORT ON EFFORTS TO ADVANCE ACCOUNTABILITY FOR
HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES AND OTHER RELATED CRIMES IN
SYRIA.

(a) Report Required.--Not later than 180 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act and annually thereafter
until 2029, the Secretary of State shall submit to the
appropriate congressional committees a comprehensive report
on efforts to advance accountability and justice measures for
human rights violations and atrocities committed by the Assad
regime, ISIS, and other extremist groups.
(b) Elements of the Report.--The report required under
subsection (a) shall include the following elements:
(1) A summary of the United States national security
interests and foreign policy objectives related to
accountability and justice measures in Syria and how these
interests are being supported through United States foreign
assistance programs and engagement.
(2) A description of Syrian, regional, and multilateral
efforts to support the collection and documentation of
evidence of abuses, to process case-ready evidence files for
local or international courts, and to pursue justice through
the Syrian court system of convicted offenders.

[[Page S5398]]

SEC. 1278. STRATEGY TO ENSURE THE ENDURING DEFEAT OF ISIS IN
SYRIA.

(a) Strategy Required.--Not later than 90 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in
consultation with the Secretary of Defense and the heads of
other appropriate Federal agencies, shall jointly develop and
submit to the appropriate congressional committees and the
Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of
Representatives a strategy to combat and prevent the further
resurgence of ISIS and its affiliates in Syria.
(b) Elements of the Strategy.--The strategy required under
subsection (a) shall include the following elements:
(1) A summary of the United States national security
interests in Syria and the impact a resurgence of ISIS would
have on those interests.
(2) A comprehensive assessment of current training and
support programs by agency or department, specifically
focused on countering ISIS and other terrorist organizations,
including nonlethal assistance, training, and organizational
capacity for the Syrian authorities and others to counter
gains by ISIS and its affiliates.
(3) A detailed description of United States Government
efforts to support, develop, and expand the capacity of
Syrian authorities to combat ISIS and prevent its return.
(4) An estimate of the number of current, active ISIS
members in Iraq and Syria, including an assessment of those
being held in detainee camps or prisons.
(5) A comprehensive plan to repatriate or secure ISIS
detainees currently being held in Syria and Iraq, including--
(A) the designation of an existing senior-level official
within the executive branch to serve as a coordinator of
relevant agencies for all matters for the United States
Government relating to the long-term disposition of ISIS
fighter detainees, including all matters in connection with--
(i) repatriation, transfer, prosecution, and intelligence-
gathering;
(ii) coordinating a whole-of-government approach with other
countries and international organizations, including
INTERPOL, to ensure secure chains of custody and locations of
ISIS foreign terrorist fighter detainees;
(iii) coordinating technical and evidentiary assistance to
foreign countries to aid in the successful prosecution of
ISIS foreign terrorist fighter detainees; and
(iv) all multilateral and international engagements led by
the Department of State and other agencies that are related
to the current and future handling, detention, and
prosecution of ISIS foreign terrorist fighter detainees;
(B) engagement with international partners on legal,
tenable mechanisms for repatriating foreign fighters; and
(C) a plan for how funds in appropriations Acts will
support disarmament, demobilization, disengagement,
deradicalization, and reintegration of current and former
members and affiliates of ISIS and their family members.
(6) A description, which may be in classified form, of ISIS
senior leadership and infrastructure and efforts to target
leadership figures.
(7) A comprehensive description of the activities of the
United States Government, utilizing social media and other
communication technologies, to counter ISIS's propaganda and
influence and its ability to use such technologies to recruit
fighters domestically and internationally, including through
private technology companies, and a description of how such
activities are being coordinated across the United States
Government.
(8) A description of the steps taken by the United States
Government, including through the use of economic sanctions
to deny financial resources to ISIS and its affiliates, in
conjunction with international partners and financial
institutions.
(9) A description of United States Government efforts to
support credible war crimes prosecutions against ISIS
fighters.
(10) A plan to ensure intelligence-sharing by the United
States and its partners and allies with Syria authorities
related to credible ISIS threats against Syrian authorities,
and other ISIS and terror threats, as necessary.
(11) A plan to ensure the delivery of humanitarian and
reintegration assistance.

SEC. 1279. APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DEFINED.

In this subtitle, the term ``appropriate congressional
committees'' means the Committee on Foreign Relations of the
Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives.
______