HR 1234 IHCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

To end the United States occupation of Iraq immediately.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

February 28, 2007

Mr. KUCINICH 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 concernedCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

To end the United States occupation of Iraq immediately.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) The insurgency in Iraq has been fueled by the United States occupation and the prospect of a long-term presence as indicated by the building of permanent United States military bases.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) A United States declaration of an intention to withdraw United States troops and close military bases will help dampen the insurgency which has been inspired to resist colonization and fight aggressors and those who have supported United States policy.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) A United States declaration of an intention to withdraw United States troops and close military bases will provide an opening in which parties within Iraq and in the region can set the stage for negotiations toward a peaceful settlement in Iraq.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(4) The cost of withdrawing United States troops from Iraq could be as low as $10 billion according to the Congressional Budget Office.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(5) A United States shift in policy away from unilateralism and toward cooperation will provide new opportunities for exploring common concerns about the situation in Iraq.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(6) The United Nations is best equipped to build a political consensus in Iraq through the crafting of a political agreement.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(7) The end of the occupation of Iraq creates a political environment that enables the world community to assist the United States in an orderly transition.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(8) The United Nations is the only international organization with the ability to mobilize and the legitimacy to authorize peacekeeping troops.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(9) The United Nations can implement the basis of an agreement that will end the occupation of Iraq and begin the transition to international peacekeepers.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(10) The United Nations can field an international security and peacekeeping mission, but such a mission cannot take shape unless there is a peace to keep, and that will be dependent upon a political process which reaches agreement between all the Iraqi parties.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(11) Reconstruction activities must be reorganized and closely monitored in Iraq by the Iraqi Government, with the assistance of the international community.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(12) Any attempt to sell Iraqi oil assets during the United States occupation will be a significant stumbling block to peaceful resolution.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(13) There must be fairness in the distribution of oil resources in Iraq.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(14) A reconciliation process that brings people together is the only way to overcome their fears and reconcile their differences.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(15) It is essential to create a minimum of understanding and mutual confidence between the Shiites, Sunnis, and Kurds.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(16) The process of reconciliation must begin with a national conference, organized with the assistance of the United Nations and with the participation of parties that can create, participate in, and affect the process of reconciliation, defined as an airing of all grievances and the creation of pathways toward open, transparent talks producing truth and resolution of grievances.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(17) The only sure path toward reconciliation is through the political process.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(18) All factions and all insurgents not associated with al-Qaeda must be brought together in a relentless process which involves Saudis, Turks, Syrians, and Iranians.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(19) Achieving peace requires a process of international truth and reconciliation between the people of the United States and the people of Iraq.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(20) A reparations program to assist Iraqis is essential to enable reconciliation.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 2. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

It is the policy of the United States that--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) the United States should end the occupation of Iraq immediately, simultaneously with the introduction of a United Nations-led international peacekeeping force pursuant to an agreement with nations within the region and which incorporates the terms and conditions specified in section 1;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) the Department of Defense should use readily available existing funds to bring all United States troops and necessary equipment home while a political settlement is being negotiated and preparations are made for a transition to an international security and peacekeeping force;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) the Department of Defense should order a simultaneous return of all United States contractors and subcontractors and turn over all contracting work to the Iraqi Government;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(4) the United Nations should be encouraged to prepare an international security and peacekeeping force to be deployed to Iraq, replacing United States troops who then return home;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(5) the United States should provide funding for a United Nations peacekeeping mission, in which 50 percent of the peacekeeping troops should come from nations with large Muslim populations;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(6) the international security force, under United Nations direction, should remain in place until the Iraqi Government is capable of handling its own security;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(7) the Iraqi Government, with assistance from the United Nations, should immediately restart the failed reconstruction program in Iraq and rebuild roads, bridges, schools, hospitals, and other public facilities, houses, and factories with jobs and job training going to local Iraqis;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(8) the Iraqi Government, in an act of political sovereignty, should set aside initiatives to privatize Iraqi oil interests or other national assets and abandon all efforts, whether at the behest of the United States or otherwise, to change Iraqi national law to facilitate privatization;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(9) the Iraq Government, in an act of political sovereignty, should set forth a plan to stabilize Iraq's cost for food and energy, on par to what the prices were before the United States invasion and occupation;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(10) the Iraqi Government, in an act of political sovereignty, should strive for economic sovereignty for Iraq by working with the world community to restore Iraq's fiscal integrity without structural readjustment measures of the International Monetary Funds or the World Bank;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(11) the United States should initiate a reparations program for the loss of Iraqi lives, physical and emotional injuries, and damage to property, which should include an effort to rescue the tens of thousands of Iraqi orphans from lives of destitution; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(12) the United States should refrain from any covert operations in Iraq and any attempts to destabilize the Iraqi Government.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 3. DISENGAGEMENT OF UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES FROM IRAQ.

(a) Withdrawal of Armed Forces- Not later than the end of the 3-month period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, all United States Armed Forces serving in Iraq shall be completely withdrawn from Iraq and returned to the United States or redeployed outside of the Middle East.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(b) Prohibition on Use of Funds To Continue Deployment of Armed Forces in Iraq-CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) PROHIBITION- Funds appropriated or otherwise made available under any provision of law may not be obligated or expended to deploy or continue to deploy members or units of the United States Armed Forces to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) EXCEPTIONS- Paragraph (1) does not apply to the use of funds--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(A) to provide for the safe and orderly withdrawal of the Armed Forces from Iraq pursuant to subsection (a);CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(B) to ensure the security of Iraq by carrying out consultations with the Government of Iraq, other foreign governments, the United Nations, and other international organizations; orCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(C) to ensure the security of Iraq by funding the United Nations-led peacekeeping mission.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(c) Armed Forces Defined- In this section, the term `Armed Forces' has the meaning given the term in section 101(a)(4) of title 10, United States Code.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink