Comprehensive Diplomatic Offensive for Iraq
S. 2130
S. 2130, "Sense of the Senate on the Need for a Comprehensive Diplomatic Offensive" for Iraq, affirms that there is no military solution to the Iraq war and cites the recommendation of the Iraq Study Group for a robust diplomatic initiative including all of Iraq's neighbors.
The resolution:
*calls on the administration to organize a comprehensive diplomatic offensive with bilateral, regional, and international dimensions to improve security, advance national reconciliation in Iraq, and facilitate the withdrawal of U.S. troops
*urges the president and secretary of state to be personally involved Iraq diplomacy, to appoint a high-level presidential envoy for the Middle East, and to reallocate State Department diplomats, aide workers, and funds to support the offensive
*acknowledges the regional diplomacy on Iraq initiated by the administration but calls for "a more intensive and sustained effort"
*encourages the U.S. to seek a greater United Nations role in Iraq, and
*urges the U.S. to provide greater humanitarian assistance to Iraqi refugees and the internally displaced, and to take the lead in developing a regional framework to resolve refugee issues.
The resolution was introduced on October 3 by a bipartisan group of senators: Robert Casey (PA), Susan Collins (ME), Richard Durbin (IL), John Kerry (MA), and Lisa Murkowski (AK).
If the resolution gains sufficient support it is likely to be voted on as a amendment to the 2008 funding bill for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that the Senate is expected to take up in January or February.
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