22 U.S.C. § 4803 — Designation of high risk, high threat posts

Page 1612 TITLE 22—FOREIGN RELATIONS AND INTERCOURSE § 4803 ‘‘(a) SPECIAL SECURITY PROGRAM.—The Secretary of State shall develop and implement, within three months after the date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 22, 1987], a special personnel security program for per- sonnel of the Department of State assigned to United States diplomatic and consular posts in high intel- ligence threat countries who are responsible for secu- rity at those posts and for any individuals performing guard functions at those posts. Such program shall in- clude— ‘‘(1) selection criteria and screening to ensure suit- ability for assignment to high intelligence threat countries; ‘‘(2) counterintelligence awareness and related training; ‘‘(3) security reporting and command arrangements designed to counter intelligence threats; and ‘‘(4) length of duty criteria and policies regarding rest and recuperative absences. ‘‘(b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this subsection [Dec. 22, 1987], the Secretary of State shall report to the Con- gress on the special personnel security program re- quired by subsection (a). ‘‘(c) DEFINITION.—As used in subsection (a), the term ‘high intelligence threat country’ means— ‘‘(1) a country listed as a Communist country in section 620(f) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 [22 U.S.C. 2370(f)]; and ‘‘(2) any other country designated as a high intel- ligence threat country for purposes of this section by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, the Director of Central Intelligence, or the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.’’ [Reference to the Director of Central Intelligence or the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency in the Director’s capacity as the head of the intelligence com- munity deemed to be a reference to the Director of Na- tional Intelligence. Reference to the Director of Cen- tral Intelligence or the Director of the Central Intel- ligence Agency in the Director’s capacity as the head of the Central Intelligence Agency deemed to be a ref- erence to the Director of the Central Intelligence Agen- cy. See section 1081(a), (b) of Pub. L. 108–458, set out as a note under section 3001 of Title 50, War and National Defense.] § 4803. Designation of high risk, high threat posts (a) Initial designation Not later than 30 days after December 16, 2016, the Department of State shall submit to the ap- propriate congressional committees and the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report, in classified form, that contains a list of diplo- matic and consular posts designated as high risk, high threat posts. (b) Designations before opening or reopening posts Before opening or reopening a diplomatic or consular post, the Secretary shall determine if such post should be designated as a high risk, high threat post. (c) Designating existing posts The Secretary shall regularly review existing diplomatic and consular posts to determine if any such post should be designated as a high risk, high threat post if conditions at such post or the surrounding security environment require such a designation. (d) Definitions In this section: (1) Appropriate congressional committees The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com- mittees’’ means the Committee on Foreign Af- fairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Sen- ate. (2) High risk, high threat post The term ‘‘high risk, high threat post’’ means a United States diplomatic or consular post or other United States mission abroad, as determined by the Secretary, that, among other factors— (A) is located in a country— (i) with high to critical levels of political violence and terrorism; and (ii) the government of which lacks the ability or willingness to provide adequate security; and (B) has mission physical security plat- forms that fall below the Department of State’s established standards. (Pub. L. 99–399, title I, § 104, as added Pub. L. 114–323, title I, § 101(a), Dec. 16, 2016, 130 Stat. 1907; amended Pub. L. 115–94, § 2(a), Dec. 18, 2017, 131 Stat. 2038.) Editorial Notes PRIOR PROVISIONS A prior section 4803, Pub. L. 99–399, title I, § 104(a), Aug. 27, 1986, 100 Stat. 856, established Bureau of Diplo- matic Security in Department of State, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 103–236, title I, § 162(g)(3), Apr. 30, 1994, 108 Stat. 407. A prior section 104 of Pub. L. 99–399 enacted this sec- tion and amended former section 2652 of this title and section 5315 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 103–236, title I, § 162(g)(3), Apr. 30, 1994, 108 Stat. 407. AMENDMENTS 2017—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 115–94 inserted ‘‘and the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives’’ after ‘‘appropriate congres- sional committees’’. § 4804. Briefings on embassy security (a) Briefing The Secretary shall provide monthly briefings to the appropriate congressional committees on— (1) progress towards opening or reopening a high risk, high threat post, and the risk to na- tional security of the continued closure or any suspension of operations and remaining bar- riers to doing so, including— (A) the importance and appropriateness of the objectives of the proposed post to the na- tional security of the United States, the risk to United States national security of the post’s continued closure or suspension of op- erations, and the type and level of security threats such post could encounter; (B) working plans to expedite the approval and funding for establishing and operating such post, implementing physical security measures, providing necessary security and management personnel, and the provision of necessary equipment; (C) the type and level of security threats such post could encounter, and security ‘‘tripwires’’ that would determine specific action, including enhanced security meas-