Iraqi and Kurdish Peshmerga Forces Defense Act of 2023

[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5232 Introduced in House (IH)]

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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 Representatives 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''.

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 Secretary 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 include air defense systems, to 
        counter attack by missiles, 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 paragraph (2), not 
        later than 90 days after the date on 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 implementation 
                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 notification.--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 congressional 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 Defined.--In this section, the 
term ``congressional defense committees'' has the meaning given that 
term in section 101 of title 10, United States Code.
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