Sec. 401 Increased support for the opposition
Increased authorization To provide lethal and nonlethal assistance to Syrian armed opposition— Subject to subsection (b), the President is authorized, notwithstanding any other provision of law and using funds made available for foreign assistance, to provide assistance, including defense articles, defense services, and training to members of the Syrian Supreme Military Council, units of the Free Syrian Army, and other Syrian entities opposed to the government of Bashar al-Assad.
Notification— Not later than 15 days before obligating funds or otherwise making commitments, as the case may be, to provide the assistance described in subsection (a), the President shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees—
a certification that—
assistance to any unit is being provided in accordance with section 620M of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2378d);
the leader or leaders of any unit for which assistance is planned to be provided are, based on the information available to the United States Government—
not affiliated with any organization that has been designated as a foreign terrorist organization pursuant to section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1189);
opposed to the carrying out of sectarian violence and revenge killings; and
committed to civilian rule and the rule of law for Syria;
any military education and training will include information on observance of and respect for applicable laws of war, human rights, and fundamental freedoms; and
no man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS) will be transferred as part of the assistance; and
a written policy justification, budget, execution plan and timeline, and anticipated completion date for the planned activity.
Code of conduct— The United States Government shall encourage any entity receiving assistance pursuant to subsection (a) to commit to a code of conduct that includes respect for the applicable laws of war, human rights, fundamental freedoms, and a commitment to refrain from sectarian violence.
Reporting requirement— In the event that the President exercises the authority in subsection (a), the President shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees every 90 days thereafter until such time as the authority is no longer being exercised, a detailed report on—
the education, training or assistance provided;
the vetting conducted to satisfy the certification requirement in subsection (b)(1); and
steps taken to encourage the development of a code of conduct outlined in subsection (c).
Sunset provision— The authority described in subsection (a) shall terminate on October 1, 2018.