H.Doc.107-101 PERIODIC REPORT ON THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY ...

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107th Congress, 1st Session - - - - - - - - - - House Document 107-100 


 
PERIODIC REPORT ON THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY WITH RESPECT TO THE TALIBAN 
                            IN AFGHANISTAN

                               __________

                             COMMUNICATION

                                  from

                   THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

                              transmitting

A 6-MONTH PERIODIC REPORT ON THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY WITH RESPECT TO THE 
  TALIBAN IN AFGHANISTAN THAT WAS DECLARED IN EXECUTIVE ORDER 13129 OF 
  JULY 4, 1999, PURSUANT TO 50 U.S.C. 1703(c)

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 July 16, 2001.--Referred to the Committee on International Relations 
                       and ordered to be printed
                               __________

                    U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
89-011                     WASHINGTON : 2001

                                           The White House,
                                         Washington, June 30, 2001.
Hon. J. Dennis Hastert,
Speaker of the House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Speaker: As required by section 401(c) of the 
National Emergencies Act, 50 U.S.C. 1641(c), and section 204(c) 
of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), 50 
U.S.C. 1703(c), I transmit herewith a 6-month periodic report 
on the national emergency with respect to the Taliban that was 
declared in Executive Order 13129 of July 4, 1999.
            Sincerely,
                                                    George W. Bush.
 President's Periodic Report on the National Emergency With Respect to 
                       the Taliban in Afghanistan

    I hereby report to the Congress on developments over the 
course of the past 6 months concerning the national emergency 
with respect to the actions and polices of the Taliban in 
Afghanistan that was declared in Executive Order 13129 of July 
4, 1999. This report is submitted pursuant to section 401(c) of 
the National Emergencies Act, 50 U.S.C. 1641(c), and section 
204(c) of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, 50 
U.S.C. 1703(c), (``IEEPA'').
    1. On January 11, 2001, the Office of Foreign Assests 
Control (OFAC) issued the Taliban (Afghanistan) Sanctions 
Regulations, 31 CFR Part 545 (the ``Regulations'') (66 FR 2726, 
January 11, 2001). A copy of the Regulations is attached to 
this report.
    2. During the past 6 months, OFAC has authorized one 
nongovernmental organization to conduct humanitarian relief 
operations in the territory of Afghanistan controlled by the 
Taliban, bringing the total of such authorizations to 24. In 
addition, OFAC issued six licenses to authorize certain 
payments in connection with overflights of Taliban-controlled 
territory and to unblock funds in which there is no interest of 
the Taliban.
    OFAC continues to emphasize to the international banking 
community in the United States the importance of identifying 
and blocking payments made by or on behalf of the Taliban and 
has worked closely with the banks to assure the effectiveness 
of interdiction software systems used to identify such 
payments. As of May 9, 2001, 18 transactions totaling 
approximately $2.56 million were blocked during this period. 
This brings the total assets blocked since the inception of the 
program to more than $252 million. Under the Regulations, 
transactions in violation of the sanctions where there is no 
blockable interest of the Taliban must be returned to remitters 
(i.e., ``rejected''). During the reporting period, 42 
transactions were rejected by U.S. banks causing a disruption 
of nearly $1.4 million in financial dealings involving the 
territory of Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban.
    On March 1, 2001, OFAC, in consultation with the Department 
of State, issued a Blocking Order and Notice of Office Closure 
to the New York representative of the Taliban Islsmic Movement 
of Afghanistan. This action served effectively to close the 
Taliban's New York office under the authority of Executive 
Order 13129, consistent with UN Security Council Resolution 
1333. In connection with this action, OFAC issued an order to a 
New York bank blocking two accounts maintained by the Taliban's 
New York office.
    Various other enforcement actions and investigations are 
being aggressively pursued. Reports of new violations are also 
being scrutinized. Since the last report, OFAC has collected 
two civil penalties totaling nearly $5,100 for violations of 
IEEPA and the Regulations by a US bank and a U.S. company.
    3. The expenses incurred by the Federal Government in the 
6-month period from January 4 through July 3, 2001, that are 
directly attributable to the exercise of powers and authorities 
conferred by the declaration of the national emergency with 
respect to the Taliban in Afghanistan, are estimated at 
approximately $300,000. Personnel costs were largely centered 
in the Department of the Treasury (particularly in the Office 
of Foreign Assets Control, the Office of the General Counsel, 
and the U.S. Customs Service), the Department of State, and 
components of the Department of Justice.
    4. The Taliban continues to provide Usama bin Laden and the 
al-Oaida organization with a safe haven and base of operations, 
despite repeated efforts by the United States to persuade the 
Taliban to expel bin Laben to a third country where he can be 
brought to justice. The Taliban also allows Usama bin Laden to 
make repeated public threats against the United States, to 
operate a network of terrorist training camps, and to use 
Afghanistan as a base from which to sponsor terrorist acts 
abroad. Available information confirms that bin Laden's 
organization, working with other terrorist groups, continues 
actively to plan attacks on Americans and others. Reliable 
information also indicates that the bin Laden network seeks to 
acquire weapons of mass destruction, including chemical 
weapons.
    The international community recognized that the Taliban's 
actions pose an unusual threat to international security and 
the need to take action against the Taliban for its harboring 
of Usama bin Laden by the unanimous adoption of UN Security 
Council Resolution 1267, which freezes funds and other 
financial resources of the Taliban and prohibits Taliban-
associated flights. The seriousness of this threat was 
underscored by the Security Council's subsequent adoption of 
further sanctions in Resolution 1333.
    I shall continue to exercise the powers at my disposal to 
apply economic sanctions against the Taliban in Afghanistan as 
long as these measures are appropriate, and will continue to 
report periodically to the Congress on significant developments 
pursuant to 50 U.S.C. 1703(c).
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