[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1112 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 1112
Urging the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to
honor their partnership with the United States.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 12, 2022
Mr. Malinowski (for himself, Ms. Spanberger, Mr. Allred, Mr. Kim of New
Jersey, Mr. Lieu, and Ms. Wild) submitted the following resolution;
which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Urging the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to
honor their partnership with the United States.
Whereas the United States, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab
Emirates have traditionally had a close partnership based on mutual
interests, security cooperation, the stability of oil markets,
information sharing, economic development, and other forms of
cooperation;
Whereas, on October 31, 1950, President Harry Truman stated that Saudi Arabia's
``steadfast loyalty and good will, alike in times of stress as in days
of happiness and well-being, have ever been sources of pride and
pleasure to me and to the American people'';
Whereas, on May 24, 1977, President Jimmy Carter said, ``I don't believe there
is any other nation with whom we've had better friendship and a deeper
sense of cooperation than we've found in Saudi Arabia. . .Saudi Arabia
is a nation which has grown in many ways in the last few years in world
importance. Their supplies of energy are crucial to the well-being of
people in many nations. They produce their own oil for world consumption
beyond the level which perhaps would be best for them.'';
Whereas, on February 11, 1985, President Ronald Reagan said, ``The friendship
and cooperation between our governments and people are precious jewels
whose value we should never underestimate. The positive nature of our
relations demonstrates that cultural differences, as distinct as our
own, need not separate or alienate peoples from one another.'';
Whereas, on March 10, 2006, President George W. Bush stated, ``In order to win
the war on terror, we have got to strengthen our relationships and
friendships with moderate Arab countries in the Middle East. UAE is a
committed ally in the war on terror. They are a key partner for our
military in a critical region.'';
Whereas, on March 9, 2016, then Vice President Joe Biden underscored the strong
bilateral relationship between the United States and the United Arab
Emirates, calling the bond between the United Arab Emirates and the
United States ``one of the most significant in the region'';
Whereas, on April 21, 2016, President Barack Obama said, ``The fact of the
matter is, is that the friendship and cooperation that exist between the
United States and the Gulf countries has been consistent for decades.
During the course of our administration, the GCC countries have
extensively cooperated with us on counterterrorism, on curbing the
financing of terrorist activities.'';
Whereas the United States came to the aid of Persian Gulf allies following
Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait on August 2, 1990, including more
than 500,000 American troops deployed to Saudi Arabia as part of
Operation Desert Shield, protecting the territorial integrity of the
Kingdom and further solidifying the relationship between the United
States and Persian Gulf allies;
Whereas, like Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait that threatened the security
of United States Persian Gulf allies, Russian President Vladimir Putin
is executing a war of choice by invading Ukraine that threatens to upend
70 years of international laws and norms;
Whereas, since 1979, the United States has sold over $138,000,000,000 to Saudi
Arabia and over $26,000,000,000 to the United Arab Emirates in weapons,
defense services, and military training to assist both countries combat
security risks in the region, including from terrorism, nonstate actors,
and neighboring countries;
Whereas, since 2015, the United States has assisted the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
and the United Arab Emirates defend their territorial integrity against
Ansar Allah, also known as the Houthis, and other threats emanating from
Yemen, including al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula;
Whereas, following the September 14, 2019, attack on the Abqaiq oil facilities
in Saudi Arabia, the United States deployed approximately 3,000 troops
to Saudi Arabia, including fighter squadrons, an air expeditionary wing,
and other air defense personnel and equipment;
Whereas, in June 2021, President Joe Biden reported to Congress that there were
approximately 2,700 United States military forces in the Kingdom,
deployed and ``operating in coordination with the Government of the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, provide air and missile defense capabilities
and support the operation of United States fighter aircraft'';
Whereas, on September 11, 2021, Department of Defense Spokesman John Kirby said,
``The Defense Department continues to maintain tens of thousands of
forces and a robust force posture in the Middle East representing some
of our most advanced air power and maritime capabilities, in support of
U.S. national interests and our regional partnerships.'';
Whereas the State Department licenses contractors that maintain and sustain the
Saudi Royal Air Force amid hostilities in Yemen and its continued
bombing campaign against Ansar Allah;
Whereas the United States currently has 2,000 American troops at Al-Dhafra Air
Base, United Arab Emirates, including drones and advanced F-35 fighters,
in order to assist the United Arab Emirates defend its territory;
Whereas, on January 24, 2022, and January 31, 2022, United States personnel
assisted the United Arab Emirates intercept ballistic missiles fired by
Ansar Allah in Yemen with United States-administered Patriot missile
defense batteries;
Whereas there are many factors contributing to the high price of oil, including
structural market issues that predate Russia's invasion of Ukraine and
uncertainty about global demand;
Whereas the agreement between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting
Countries (OPEC), led primarily by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and
Russia to maintain a steady, limited increase in monthly petroleum
production is also a major factor in the rising price of gasoline
worldwide;
Whereas, despite their close and long-lasting strategic relationship with the
United States, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have chosen not
to increase petroleum outputs beyond OPEC-agreed levels amid a major
increase in global fuel prices;
Whereas attempts by the White House to engage with United States Gulf partners
on potentially increasing petroleum production have gone unanswered,
with reports suggesting that the leaders of Saudi Arabia and United Arab
Emirates refused calls with President Joe Biden on the issue;
Whereas Article 2.B of OPEC's founding charter states ``the Organization shall
devise ways and means of ensuring the stabilization of prices in
international oil markets with a view to eliminating harmful and
unnecessary fluctuations'';
Whereas, following a decline in demand after the outbreak of the COVID-19
pandemic and a request from President Donald Trump, Saudi Arabia made
drastic changes to crude oil production and output in the face of
previous crises, including finalizing an OPEC deal in April 2020 that
slashed 9,700,000 barrels a day, or close to 10 percent of the world's
output;
Whereas, while the United States and the world move toward expanding the use of
clean energy, petroleum production should increase in the short term to
mitigate rising oil prices;
Whereas Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are understood by experts to
be the only countries with the ability to increase production that could
be felt by consumers worldwide;
Whereas Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have approximately a combined
additional 1,800,000 to 3,000,000 barrels a day of spare production
capacity; and
Whereas activating their spare production would increase supply more rapidly
than currently projected and help stabilize global crude prices: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives urges the Persian Gulf
partners of the United States, including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
and the United Arab Emirates, to--
(1) honor their lasting friendship with the United States;
(2) recognize the United States contributions to their
security; and
(3) work together with the United States in good faith to
increase oil production to stabilize energy markets.
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