Israel Relations Normalization Act of 2021
This bill requires the Department of State to take certain actions promoting the normalization of relations between Israel, Arab states, and other relevant countries and regions.
Specifically, the State Department must develop a strategy on expanding and strengthening the Abraham Accords (the term used to refer collectively to agreements between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and between Israel and Bahrain marking the public normalization of relations between the two Arab countries and Israel). The strategy must include a description of how the U.S. government will encourage further normalization of relations with Israel.
In addition, the State Department must report on options for U.S. international efforts to promote the strengthening of ties between Israel, Arab states, and other relevant countries and regions. The State Department must also report on the status of the normalization of relations with Israel, including information on (1) laws that punish individuals for people-to-people relations with Israelis (i.e., anti-normalization laws), and (2) evidence of steps taken by Arab governments toward permitting or encouraging normalized relations between their citizens or residents and Israeli citizens.
[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2748 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2748
To encourage the normalization of relations with Israel, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 21, 2021
Mr. Schneider (for himself, Mrs. Wagner, Ms. Garcia of Texas, Mr.
Meijer, Mr. Meeks, and Mr. McCaul) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To encourage the normalization of relations with Israel, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Israel Relations Normalization Act
of 2021''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Support for peace between Israel and its neighbors has
longstanding bipartisan support in Congress.
(2) For decades, the United States Congress has promoted
Israel's acceptance among Arab states and other relevant
countries and regions and has enacted numerous laws opposing
efforts to boycott, isolate, and stigmatize America's ally,
Israel.
(3) The recent peace and normalization agreements between
Israel and several Arab states--the United Arab Emirates,
Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco--have the potential to
fundamentally transform the security, diplomatic, and economic
environment in the Middle East and North Africa and advance
vital United States national security interests.
(4) These agreements build upon the decades-long leadership
of the United States Government and other governments in
helping Israel broker peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan and
promoting peace talks between Israel and Syria, Lebanon, and
the Palestinians.
(5) These agreements also build on decades long private
diplomatic and security engagement between Israel and countries
in the region.
(6) These normalization and peace agreements could begin to
transform the region by spurring economic growth, enhancing
technological innovation, advancing understanding, and forging
closer people-to-people relations.
(7) These agreements have the potential to promote
investment, tourism, and direct flights, and promote
cooperation on security, telecommunications, technology,
energy, healthcare, culture, the environment, water security
and sustainable development.
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
It is the policy of the United States--
(1) to expand and strengthen the Abraham Accords to
encourage other nations to normalize relations with Israel and
ensure that existing agreements reap tangible security and
economic benefits for the citizens of those countries;
(2) to develop and implement a regional strategy to
encourage economic cooperation among Israel, Arab states, and
the Palestinians to enhance the prospects for regional peace,
respect for human rights, transparent governance, and
cooperation to address water scarcity, climate solutions,
health care, sustainable development, and other areas that
result in benefits for residents of those countries;
(3) to develop and implement a regional security strategy
that recognizes the shared threat posed by Iran and violent
extremist organizations, ensures sufficient United States
deterrence in the region, builds partner capacity to address
shared threats, and explores multilateral security arrangements
built around like-minded partners;
(4) to support and encourage government-to-government and
grassroots initiatives aimed at normalizing ties with the state
of Israel and promoting people-to-people contact between
Israelis, Arabs, and peoples from other countries and regions,
including by expanding and enhancing the Abraham Accords;
(5) to continue to support a negotiated solution to the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict resulting in two states--a
democratic Jewish state of Israel and a viable democratic
Palestinian state--living side by side in peace, security, and
mutual recognition;
(6) to implement the Nita M. Lowey Middle East Partnership
for Peace Act of 2020 (title VIII of division K of Public Law
116-260), which supports economic cooperation and peacebuilding
efforts among Israelis and Palestinians;
(7) to oppose efforts to delegitimize the state of Israel
and legal barriers to normalization of relations with Israel;
(8) to work to combat anti-Semitism and support
normalization of relations with Israel, including by countering
anti-Semitic narratives on social media and state media and
pressing for educational curriculum reform; and
(9) to encourage partnerships and collaboration on climate
solutions, water, health, sustainable development, and other
areas.
SEC. 4. UNITED STATES STRATEGY TO STRENGTHEN AND EXPAND ABRAHAM ACCORDS
AND OTHER NORMALIZATION AGREEMENTS WITH ISRAEL.
(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of State,
in consultation with the Administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development, the Secretary of Defense, and the heads of
other appropriate Federal departments and agencies, shall develop and
submit to the appropriate congressional committees a strategy on
expanding and strengthening the Abraham Accords.
(b) Elements.--The strategy required under subsection (a) shall
also include each of the following elements:
(1) An assessment of future staffing and resourcing
requirements of entities within the Department of State, the
United States Agency for International Development, the
Department of Defense, and other appropriate Federal
departments and agencies with responsibility to coordinate
United States efforts to expand and strengthen the Abraham
Accords.
(2) An assessment of the bilateral and multilateral
cooperation between Israel, Arab states, and other relevant
countries and regions that have normalized relations with
Israel, including an assessment of cooperation in the economic,
social, cultural, scientific, technical, educational, and
health fields and an assessment of roadblocks to increased
cooperation.
(3) An assessment of bilateral and multilateral security
cooperation between Israel, the United States, Arab states, and
other relevant countries and regions that have normalized
relations with Israel, including potential roadblocks to
increased security cooperation, interoperability, and
information sharing.
(4) An assessment of the likelihood of additional Arab
states and other relevant countries and regions to normalize
relations with Israel.
(5) An assessment of opportunities created by normalization
agreements with Israel to advance prospects for peace between
Israelis and Palestinians.
(6) A detailed description of how the United States
Government will leverage diplomatic lines of effort and
resources from other stakeholders (including from foreign
governments, international donors, and multilateral
institutions) to encourage normalization, economic development,
and people-to-people programming.
(c) Form.--
(1) Unclassified matter.--Subject to paragraph (2), the
report required by subsection (a) and each of the elements
described in paragraphs (1) through (5) of subsection (b) shall
be submitted in unclassified form.
(2) Classified annex.--The report required by subsection
(a) shall also include a classified annex, transmitted
separately, that contains only the matter included in the
report pursuant to paragraph (6) of subsection (b).
(d) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.--In this section,
the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on
Armed Services, and the Committee on Appropriations of the
House of Representatives; and
(2) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on
Armed Services, and the Committee on Appropriations of the
Senate.
SEC. 5. REPORT ON INTERNATIONAL EFFORTS TO PROMOTE NORMALIZATION.
(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in coordination with the
Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development
and the heads of other relevant Federal departments and agencies, shall
submit a report to the appropriate congressional committees regarding
options for United States international efforts to promote
strengthening of ties between Israel, Arab states, and other relevant
countries and regions.
(b) Elements.--The report required under subsection (a) shall also
include each of the following elements:
(1) A description of options for leveraging contributions
of international donors, institutions, and partner countries to
facilitate people-to-people and government-to-government
relations between Israelis and Arabs.
(2) Identification of existing relevant investment funds
that support Israel-Arab state cooperation and recommendations
for how such funds could be used to support normalization and
increase prosperity for all relevant stakeholders.
(3) An assessment for creating an Abrahamic Center for
Pluralism to prepare educational materials, convene
international seminars, promote tolerance and pluralism, and
bring together scholars as a means of advancing religious
tolerance and countering political and religious extremism.
(4) An assessment of the benefit to Israel and its
neighbors of participating in a regional conference on climate
solutions, water, health, and sustainable development.
(5) An assessment of the feasibility and benefit of
increasing the capacity of existing Department of State and
United States Agency for International Development-funded
programs for developing people-to-people exchange programs for
young people between Israel, Arab states, and other relevant
countries and regions.
(6) Recommendations to improve Department of State
cooperation and coordination, particularly between the Special
Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, the Ambassador at
Large for International Religious Freedom, and the Director of
the Office of International Religious Freedom, to combat the
racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, and anti-Semitism that hinder
improvement of relations between Israel, Arab states, and other
relevant countries and regions.
(7) A proposal for the manner in which the United States
Government and others can use existing Federal resources to
counter Holocaust denial and anti-Semitism abroad.
(8) An assessment of the value and feasibility of Federal
support for inter-parliamentary exchange programs among Members
of Congress, of the Knesset, and parliamentarians from Arab
states and other relevant countries and regions, including
through existing Federal programs that support such exchanges.
(c) Appropriate Congressional Committees.--In this section, the
term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on
Appropriations of the House of Representatives; and
(2) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on
Appropriations of the Senate.
SEC. 6. BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS TO NORMALIZATION WITH ISRAEL.
(a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the ``Strengthening
Reporting of Actions Taken Against the Normalization of Relations with
Israel Act of 2021''.
(b) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The Arab League, an organization comprising 22 Middle
Eastern and African countries and entities, has maintained an
official boycott of Israeli companies and Israeli-made goods
since the founding of Israel in 1948.
(2) Longstanding United States policy has encouraged Arab
League states to normalize their relations with Israel and has
long prioritized funding cooperative programs that promote
normalization between Arab League States and Israel, including
the Middle East Regional Cooperation program, which promotes
Arab-Israeli scientific cooperation.
(3) While some Arab League governments are signaling
enhanced cooperation with the state of Israel on the
government-to-government level, most continue to persecute
their own citizens who establish people-to-people relations
with Israelis in nongovernmental fora, through a combination of
judicial and extrajudicial retribution.
(4) Some Arab League states maintain draconian anti-
normalization laws that punish their citizens for people-to-
people relations with Israelis, with punishments, including
imprisonment, revocation of citizenship, and execution.
Extrajudicial punishments by these and other Arab states
include summary imprisonment, accusations of ``treason'' in
government-controlled media, and professional blacklisting.
(5) Anti-normalization laws, together with the other forms
of retribution, effectively condemn these societies to mutual
estrangement and, by extension, reduce the possibility of
conciliation and compromise.
(6) Former Israeli President Shimon Peres said in 2008 at
the United Nations that Israel agrees with the Arab Peace
Initiative that a military solution to the conflict ``will not
achieve peace or provide security for the parties''.
(7) Despite the risk of retaliatory action, a rising tide
of Arab civic actors advocate direct engagement with Israeli
citizens and residents. These include the Arab Council for
Regional Integration, a group of 32 public figures from 15 Arab
countries who oppose the boycott of Israel on the grounds that
the boycott has denied Arabs the benefits of partnership with
Israelis, has blocked Arabs from helping to bridge the Israeli-
Palestinian divide, and inspired divisive intra-Arab boycotts
among diverse sects and ethnic groups.
(8) On February 11, 2020, a delegation of the Arab Council
to the French National Assembly in Paris testified to the
harmful effects of ``anti-normalization laws'', called on the
Assembly to enact a law instructing the relevant French
authorities to issue an annual report on instances of Arab
government retribution for any of their citizens or residents
who call for peace with Israel or engage in direct civil
relations with Israeli citizens, and requested democratic
legislatures to help defend the region's civil peacemakers.
(9) On May 11, 2020, 85 leaders in France published an
endorsement of the Arab Council's proposal, calling on France
and other democratic governments to ``protect Arabs who engage
in dialogue with Israeli citizens'' and proposing ``the
creation of a study group in the National Assembly as well as
in the Senate whose mission would be to ensure a legal and
technical monitoring of the obstacles which Arab proponents of
dialogue with Israelis face''.
(10) Arab-Israeli cooperation provides significant
symbiotic benefit to the security and economic prosperity of
the region.
(c) Annual Reporting.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the
Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a report on the status of the
normalization of relations between Israel, Arab states, and
other relevant countries and regions.
(2) Elements.--The report required under paragraph (1)
shall include the following information:
(A) The status of ``anti-normalization laws'' in
each country within the jurisdiction of the Bureau of
Near Eastern Affairs, including efforts within each
country to sharpen existing laws, enact new or
additional ``anti-normalization legislation'', or
repeal such laws.
(B) Instances of prosecution of citizens or
residents of Arab countries for calling for peace with
Israel, visiting the state of Israel, or engaging
Israeli citizens in any way.
(C) Instances of extrajudicial retribution by Arab
governments or government-controlled institutions
against citizens or residents of Arab countries for any
of the actions described in subparagraph (B).
(D) Evidence of steps taken by Arab governments
toward permitting or encouraging people-to-people
relations between their citizens or residents and
Israeli citizens.
(E) Instances where Arab governments used state-
owned or state-operated media outlets to promote anti-
Semitic propaganda.
(d) Appropriate Congressional Committees.--In this section, the
term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on
Appropriations of the House of Representatives; and
(2) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on
Appropriations of the Senate.
SEC. 7. SUNSET.
This Act shall cease to be effective on the date that is 5 years
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Middle East, North Africa and Global Counterterrorism.
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Voice Vote.
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