I
119THCONGRESS
1
STSESSION H. R. 1890
To administratively reassign responsibility for the Republic of Turkey within
the Department of State and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH5, 2025
Mr. S
CHNEIDER(for himself, Mr. BILIRAKIS, Ms. TITUS, Ms. MALLIOTAKIS,
Mr. P
APPAS, and Mr. GOTTHEIMER) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
A BILL
To administratively reassign responsibility for the Republic
of Turkey within the Department of State and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Turkey Diplomatic Re-4
alignment Act’’. 5
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6
Congress finds the following: 7
(1) The Republic of Turkey occupies a unique 8
geopolitical position at the intersection of Europe 9
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•HR 1890 IH
and the Middle East, influencing security, economic, 1
and diplomatic interests of the United States in both 2
regions. 3
(2) The Department of State currently assigns 4
responsibility for Turkey within the Bureau of Euro-5
pean and Eurasian Affairs, despite Turkey’s exten-6
sive engagement in Middle Eastern affairs and secu-7
rity issues. 8
(3) A reassignment of Turkey to the Bureau of 9
Near Eastern Affairs would better align diplomatic 10
strategy and facilitate regional cooperation. 11
(4) Turkey’s foreign policy trajectory in recent 12
years has distanced it from the European Union and 13
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), as 14
evidenced by its strategic realignments and domestic 15
political shifts that challenge European democratic 16
norms. 17
(5) European institutions have increasingly 18
sidelined Turkey from full integration, delaying ac-19
cession talks and raising concerns over human 20
rights, democratic governance, and rule of law. 21
(6) Turkey’s growing partnerships with non- 22
western powers, including Russia and China, along 23
with its pursuit of BRICS membership, underscore 24
its shifting priorities away from western alignment. 25
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•HR 1890 IH
(7) The Turkish government’s increasing en-1
gagement with Islamist actors, its role in conflicts 2
such as Syria and Libya, and its strained relations 3
with Israel have deepened concerns over its long- 4
term reliability as a western partner. 5
(8) The reassignment serves as a diplomatic 6
signal reflecting Turkey’s diminishing European 7
prospects and encourages national debate within 8
Turkey about its geopolitical future, particularly in 9
light of its perceived marginalization from European 10
strategic decision-making. 11
(9) Turkey has provided political and logistical 12
support to Hamas, hosting members of the group 13
and facilitating fundraising activities, further strain-14
ing its relationships with western allies and contrib-15
uting to concerns over its regional alignment. 16
(10) The United States remains committed to 17
a strong relationship with Turkey but must recali-18
brate its diplomatic engagement in recognition of 19
changing realities, ensuring U.S. regional policy re-20
mains consistent with evolving security and economic 21
dynamics. 22
SEC. 3. ADMINISTRATIVE REASSIGNMENT. 23
(a) I
NGENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 24
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State 25
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•HR 1890 IH
shall administratively reassign responsibility for the Re-1
public of Turkey from the Bureau of European and Eur-2
asian Affairs to the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs with-3
in the Department of State. 4
(b) R
EPORT TOCONGRESS.—Not later than 5 years 5
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 6
shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the 7
House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign 8
Relations of the Senate a report— 9
(1) describing the effectiveness and implications 10
of the reassignment required by subsection (a); and 11
(2) providing recommendations for further 12
changes regarding the assignment of responsibility 13
for Turkey. 14
(c) R
ULE OFCONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec-15
tion may be construed to prevent the Secretary from modi-16
fying or discontinuing the use of regional bureaus as nec-17
essary to advance the diplomatic objectives of the United 18
States. 19
Æ
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