Washington on Tuesday ratcheted up pressure on Syria, Russia and China, while making it more difficult for the administration of US President Donald Trump to reduce commitments to allies from Europe to Asia.
As part of a defense policy bill that passed the US Senate, lawmakers would impose sanctions on Syrian troops and others responsible for atrocities committed during Syria’s civil war, and fund war crimes investigations and prosecutions.
The bill also registered strong congressional concern about Russia and China. It would bind the US to supporting Ukraine militarily and bar the Trump administration from any move to recognize Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
In addition, it would restrict Trump’s ability to extract the US from NATO or draw down its troop presence in South Korea.
The bill establishes funding for long-term emergency medical care for more than 40 US diplomats, other government workers and their dependents who were injured in mysterious circumstances in Cuba and China.
Contained in the US’ National Defense Authorization Act is the entire text of the so-called Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act, which is named for a former official from the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad who took thousands of photographs of victims of torture and other abuses, and smuggled them out of the country.
The Caesar bill “applies sanctions to those who lend support to the [al-]Assad regime’s military efforts in the Syrian civil war, and grants authorities to the secretary of state to support entities collecting evidence and pursuing prosecutions against those who have committed war crimes in Syria,” the US House of Representatives Committee on Armed Services said.
The law gives the US another means to punish al-Assad and his allies with sanctions.
The US has already imposed sanctions on al-Assad and a number of his top officials, but the new authority allows foreign companies to be targeted if they are found to be supporting repression.
The US has offered modest support for probes into potential war crimes in Syria in the past.
To counter Russian aggression in Europe, US lawmakers boosted funding for the European Defense Initiative by US$734 million that would pay for military construction on the continent and provide funding for anti-submarine warfare.
They also renewed and extended US$300 million in security assistance, including lethal weaponry such as cruise and anti-ship missiles, for Ukraine.
The bill would also impose sanctions on companies and governments working on the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline that is to link Russia and Germany.
US officials believe the pipeline would increase Europe’s reliance on Russian energy.
The act seeks to deter Trump from walking away from NATO — something his critics fear is his intention — by barring the use of funds “to terminate, suspend, or file notice of withdrawal for the United States from NATO.”
It would also prohibit the Pentagon from reducing the number of US troops in South Korea below 28,500 without a determination from the US secretary of defense that such a withdrawal is in the national security interest.
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