Sec. 501. Suspension of sanctions with respect to Syria
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If the President determines that internationally recognized negotiations to resolve the violence in Syria have not concluded in an agreement or are likely not to conclude in an agreement, the President may suspend, as appropriate, in whole or in part, the imposition of sanctions otherwise required under this Act or any amendment made by this Act for a period not to exceed 120 days, and renewable for additional periods not to exceed 120 days, if the President submits to the appropriate congressional committees in writing a determination and certification that the Government of Syria has ended military attacks against and gross violations of the human rights of the people of Syria, specifically— the air space over Syria is no longer being utilized by the Government of Syria and associated forces to target civilian populations through the use of incendiary devices, including barrel bombs, chemical weapons, and conventional arms, including air-delivered missiles and explosives; areas besieged by the regime of Bashar al-Assad and associated forces, including Hezbollah and irregular Iranian forces, are no longer cut off from international aid and have regular access to humanitarian assistance, freedom of travel, and medical care; the Government of Syria is releasing all political prisoners forcibly held within the prison system of the regime of Bashar al-Assad, including the facilities maintained by various security, intelligence, and military elements associated with the Government of Syria and allowed full access to the same facilities for investigations by appropriate international human rights organizations; and the forces of the Government of Syria and associated forces, including Hezbollah, irregular Iranian forces, and air assets of the Government of the Russian Federation, are no longer engaged in deliberate targeting of medical facilities, schools, residential areas, and community gathering places, including markets, in flagrant violation of international norms.
If the President determines that internationally recognized negotiations to resolve the violence in Syria have concluded in an agreement or are likely to conclude in an agreement, the President may suspend, as appropriate, in whole or in part, the imposition of sanctions otherwise required under this Act or any amendment made by this Act for a period not to exceed 120 days if the President submits to the appropriate congressional committees in writing a determination and certification that— in the case in which the negotiations are likely to conclude in an agreement— the Government of Syria, the Syrian High Negotiations Committee or its successor, and appropriate international parties are participating in direct, face-to-face negotiations; and the suspension of sanctions under this Act or any amendment made by this Act is essential to the advancement of such negotiations; and the Government of Syria has demonstrated a commitment to a significant and substantial reduction in attacks on and violence against the people of Syria by the Government of Syria and associated forces.
The President may renew a suspension of sanctions under subparagraph
(A)for additional periods not to exceed 120 days if, for each such additional period, the President submits to the appropriate congressional committees in writing a determination and certification that— the conditions described in clauses
(i)and
(ii)of subparagraph
(A)are continuing to be met; the renewal of the suspension of sanctions is essential to implementing an agreement described in subparagraph
(A)or making progress toward concluding an agreement described in subparagraph (A); the Government of Syria and associated forces have ceased attacks against Syrian civilians; and the Government of Syria has publically committed to negotiations for a transitional government in Syria and continues to demonstrate that commitment through sustained engagement in talks and substantive and verifiable progress towards the implementation of such an agreement. Not later than 30 days after the President submits to the appropriate congressional committees a determination and certification in the case of a renewal of suspension of sanctions under paragraph (2)(B), and every 30 days thereafter, the President shall provide a briefing to the appropriate congressional committees on the status and frequency of negotiations described in paragraph (2). If the President provides a briefing to the appropriate congressional committees under subparagraph
(A)with respect to which the President indicates a lapse in negotiations described in paragraph
(2)for a period that equals or exceeds 90 days, the sanctions that were suspended under paragraph (2)(B) shall be reimposed and any further suspension of such sanctions is prohibited. It is the sense of Congress that a transitional government in Syria is a government that— is taking verifiable steps to release all political prisoners and provided full access to Syrian prisons for investigations by appropriate international human rights organizations; is taking verifiable steps to remove former senior Syrian government officials who are complicit in the conception, implementation, or coverup of war crimes, crimes against humanity, or human rights abuses from government positions and any person subject to sanctions under any provision of law; is in the process of organizing free and fair elections for a new government— to be held in a timely manner and scheduled while the suspension of sanctions or the renewal of the suspension of sanctions under this section is in effect; and to be conducted under the supervision of internationally recognized observers; is making tangible progress toward establishing an independent judiciary; is demonstrating respect for and compliance with internationally recognized human rights and basic freedoms as specified in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; is— taking steps to verifiably fulfill its commitments under the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling, and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction, done at Paris January 13, 1993, and entered into force April 29, 1997 (commonly known as the Chemical Weapons Convention ) and the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, done at Washington, London, and Moscow July 1, 1968 (21 UST 483) (commonly referred to as the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty ); making tangible progress toward becoming a signatory to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on their Destruction, done at Washington, London, and Moscow April 10, 1972 and entered into force March 26, 1975 (commonly known as the Biological Weapons Convention ); and adhering to the Missile Technology Control Regime and other control lists, as necessary; has halted the development and deployment of ballistic and cruise missiles; and is taking verifiable steps to remove from positions of authority within the intelligence and security services as well as the military those who were in a position of authority or responsibility during the conflict and who under the authority of their position were implicated in or implicit in the torture, extrajudicial killing, or execution of civilians, to include those who were involved in decisionmaking or execution of plans to use chemical weapons.