Confronting Haiti’s Terrorist Gangs: The Gang Suppression Force and the Path Ahead

sprawl

Ready, Greg? Yep.

All right. The purpose of today's hearing is to examine the security collapse in Haiti and the international response to it. Armed gangs led by US-designated foreign terrorist organizations, Vis Van Sam and Grand Griffe now control an estimated ninety percent of Port-au-Prince, have displaced more than one point four million people, and are working to supplant the Haitian state. The hearing will assess the failure of the previous multinational security support mission, the design, deployment and funding of its successor, the gang suppression force, in addition, the Haitian police and their military have been severely weakened, in part due to the legal migra migration, which has allowed gangs to take control of areas like Port-au-Prince, a situation that has got so bad that the Haitian National Police had officers start picking up their paychecks in person due to so many leaving and still receiving their direct deposits. Uh, so there is a security crisis there that we want to examine that's created a cost burden for the United States and our allies alike, uh, to the tune of billions of dollars. I would now recognize myself for an opening statement. Seven hundred miles from the s- my home state of Florida, terrorist organizations control the Haiti national capital. They don't influence it, they control it. They hold an estimated ninety percent of Port-au-Prince. They have displaced more than one point four million. They murder. They kidnap. They rape. They castrate. They feed people what they castrate. Seven percent. They extort the Haitian people on a massive scale. They seek to replace the Haitian state with something that answers to them. The consequences of a fully collapsed Haiti will not just stay in Haiti. It goes without saying that mass illegal immigration from a country explicitly governed as a safe haven for terrorists and traffickers would be harmful to America's interests and those of our allies. Here's what makes this oversight hearing different. We have already run the experiment of getting this wrong. The previous administration's answer to stabilizing stabilizing Haiti was the failed UN multinational security support mission of the MSS, a program to bring in foreigners from places like Kenya and Chad to take on gangs while costing the American taxpayer over a billion dollars. In total, over a million dollars per Kenyan that they sent into the country. Don't take my word for that. The State Department told this committee that the mission was, quote, " an ineffective boondoggle." When the last Kenyan officers flew home this past April, Haiti's gangs controlled more territory than the day the mission began. That is the definition of failure. This is exactly why I advocated for not sending any contributions to the United Nations, because this is the kind of boondoggles that they run. The United Nations authorized mission that replaced it, the gang suppression force, is built differently and hopefully learns from the mistakes of the past. It is more kinetic force, with a direct action mandate to unilaterally take the fight to the gangs. This is not just a police support mission, it's about eliminating terrorist gangs. On paper its costs are shared, assessed across the United Nations member states, with an American share of about one hundred and seventeen million dollars a year. That's far better than the over billion dollars that we spent in a year previously. I say on paper because In practice, the American taxpayer is still underwriting this mission, and we will get to that. These operations began June one. As I said, I want this mission to succeed, but wanting and hope are not strategies. So today this committee needs three things. First, we need the mission's benchmarks for success. The mission's special representative owed the United Nations Security Council a strategy by July first. So today we need to find out are its benchmarks real? or just aspirational, and what happens if some of them are missed. Second, apart from our assessed contribution, the administration has rolled out bilateral assistance piece by piece, up to forty million dollars in bridge and sustainment funds, sixty-eight million in equipment, a police recruitment surge, support for Haiti's armed forces, and now counterterrorism funds, with no specific dollar figure attached. department's own accounting is going toward, among other things, buying meals ready to eat and bottled water, a bill that the department itself says belongs to those countries, not us. We were promised a force that learned the lessons of the MSS, but the US taxpayers, on top of the check we've already written, is still underwriting this mission's food and water. How much of this new GSF, how much will this new GSF cost American citizens. Third, we need honesty about what comes next and the significant challenges that remain. The UN mandate for the GSF expires on September thirtieth, before this force even reaches full strength. The first elections in a decade are scheduled for August, but Haiti's insecurity makes those unlikely. And a private company, paid by Haiti, not by the American taxpayer, is putting the gangs on their heels with no more than a hundred and fifty people. Vectus Global, run by Eric Prince. Our own diplomats credit it with altering the momentum and the geometry of this fight, again with a hundred and fifty individuals. If a hundred and fifty contractors can do that, a fifty-five hundred person UN force should have zero excuses. Though that's all we received with the MSS mission. To our witnesses, this committee is looking for candor, tell us what is working, tell us what is not, tell us what you need. Helping Haiti is not impossible, but the lesson of the last mission was that failure was obvious for nearly two years, yet nobody changed course. That will not happen on this committee's watch. And I would now recognize ranking member Meeks from New York, for any opening statement that you may have.

Thank you, Mister Chairman, and thank you for calling this hearing, and thank you to our witnesses for being here. And I just wanna point out uh that uh I'd love for this committee also to be, if we're talking about a little penny pinching and when it, especially when it comes to Haiti, uh let's put it into perspective, you know, when we think about uh there was a, I think the the chairman said close to a billion dollars had been spent in Haiti. But we're spending more than double that, two billion dollars Each day in the president's war of choice in Iran, still no hearings or oversight from this committee. This administration has spent about five times that amount on the Maduro raid and boat strikes in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific without showing Congress if, that it has prevented a single overdose death, taxpayer money being spent. Over three hundred million dollars in taxpayer money has been directed toward the White House ballroom. Uh, and I can go on whether you're talking about the reflection pool and some other things, that this uh, president has been utilizing the taxpayer dollars, which just does not make any sense uh, to the American people. So I think that if we are going to look at some of the spending issues, I would think that we should start looking at sixteen hundred Pennsylvania Avenue. Uh, and and for years, you know, true, Haiti has endured a convergence of violence, political instability, economic collapse, and humanitarian suffering. that has no parallel in our hemisphere. Armed gangs control large parts of Haiti's capital. Families have been driven from their homes. Women and children face gender-based violence. Hospitals struggle to function. Schools have closed. Nearly five point seven million Haitians, half of the country, face acute food insecurity. And while we may not all agree on the best approach to addressing this crisis, I believe we can all agree that the United States Haiti policy, under democratic and republican administrations alike, has fallen short. Closing the gap is not only a matter of conscience, it's a matter of national and regional security. Helping Haiti overcome this crisis is not charity, it's a strategic investment in a safer and more prosperous hemisphere. But in so doing, we must recognize that another US imposed solution will not work. Haiti's future cannot be designed in Washington, New York, or Geneva. Lasting progress must be Haitian-led and accountable to the Haitian. and people. The United States should offer sustained support and we must work with like-minded countries around the world, but as partners, not as architects. That brings me to the gang suppression force. With proper implementation, the GSF can help Haitian authorities push back against gangs, secure critical infrastructure, and create the conditions for Haitians to begin rebuilding their country. I hope it is successful. But we must also be honest about the what the GSF cannot do. It cannot replace legitimate governance. It cannot substitute for long-term investments in institutions, economic opportunity, or public trust. You can capture or kill gang members, but if you do not address the broken political and economic system that creates finances and replenishes these gangs, the cycle of violence will only continue. The GSF mission is not paired with a serious political process, humanitarian relief, and a plan to reclaim gang-controlled territory. then then any gains will be temporary. Security without a political and economic strategy is not a solution, it's only a pause. A security mission in Haiti must also be accompanied by disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration programs. Haitian humanitarian assistance must flow alongside security assistance because Haitians need food, medicine, and shelter. That means that the Trump administration must bring forward a comprehensive strategy equal to the scale of the crises. The administration should start by reversing its own damaging policies. The gutting of US foreign aid has hit Haiti particularly hard. And even if the administration warns Americans against, even as the administration warns Americans against traveling to Haiti, it claims the island is safe enough to end temporary protective status, and deport some three hundred and fifty thousand Haitians. This is not just cruel, it's contradictory. and it will only exacerbate instability in Haiti. Next, the administration must identify and hold accountable those members of Haiti's political and economic elite who are supporting the gangs. It has failed to do so adequately despite a congressional mandate and w- by which the Congress uh the bipartisan Haiti Criminal Collusion uh Transparency Act, which became law last year. Congress must do more as well. I introduced a SAC per se uh in Haiti act with Representative Murphy of North Carolina, that would require the State Department to develop a comprehensive strategy to counter instability in Haiti. Congress should pass that today. Lastly, and unless Congress reauthorizes hope help for an extended period, jobs that are lifeline for Haitians fleeing gang violence will evaporate. So, support for Haiti has long been bipartisan, backing in Congress, and because the American people understand the suffering that Haitian people have endured and want to help, After the twenty ten earthquake killed more than three hundred thousand people, Americans across the country mobilized because that is who we are. The United States has a responsibility to lead, we must do so, in a way that avoids repeating the mistakes of the past, centers Haitian voices, delivers the partnership this moment demand demand. So I look forward to our discussion today, and hearing how this administration intends to be the partner that this moment calls for. Thank you. I yield back.

Thank you, Ranking Member Meeks. Other members of the committee are reminded that opening statements may be submitted for the record. We're pleased to have a distinguished panel of witnesses before us today on this important topic. The Honorable Michael Kozak, Senior Bureau Official for the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs at the US Department of State. And Colonel Justin Gorkowski, Co-Lead of the Haiti Gang Suppression Force Tiger Team at the US Department of War. This committee recognizes the importance of the issues before us, and is grateful to have you here to speak with us today. Your full statements will be made a part of the record, and I'll ask each of you try to keep your spoken remarks to about five minutes, in order to allow time for member questions. And uh, Ambassador Kozak, I recognize you for any opening statement that you may have.

Thank you, Mister Chairman. Chairman, mass ranking member Meeks, distinguished members of the committee. The US overarching objective in Haiti is baseline stability. A network of armed groups threatened to take over the Haitian while destabilizing the region. We estimate the gangs have approximately three thousand well-armed fighters. The former MSS mission supported only one thousand police with no clear mandate. They cost over half a million dollars per person per year. Last September, the United States and Panama led the UN Security Council's adoption of Resolution twenty-seven ninety-three. With this new mandate, the United States as chair and five other regional countries make up the standing group of partners, and they've recruited qualified participating states to deploy as a gang suppression force. UN logistics will support the GSF, a burden previously incurred almost entirely by US taxpayers. This UN mandate authorized the deployment of up to fifty-five hundred uniform military and police personnel to conduct intelligence-led targeted operations To neutralize, isolate and deter the gangs. To secure critical infrastructure and to enhance the operational capacity of the Haitian security forces through joint planning and operations. We are getting more than five times the forces, while the overall enterprise will cost the US approximately one fifth of what we were spending with the MSS. So, five times more bang for one fifth of the bucks. The civilian staff component led by GFS Special Representative Jack Christofides provides on the ground support, oversight and accountability for the force. The organization of American states is involved as a key regional stakeholder body, and I'm pleased to announce that at the uh OAS General Assembly just last month, the OAS unanimously called for renewal of the uh of the mandate by the UN Security Council, very important and dealing with uh threats of veto by Russia and China. That was a decisive factor I think last year, having the region completely together. In the coming weeks, more troops and their equipment will arrive and hold more territory. The department is working with UN professionals to ensure the right pieces are positioned for success. As the GSF helps Haiti retake in secure terrain, strategic infrastructure, and vital supply and transit routes, the force is working to put itself out of business. One of the first tasks of the special representatives was to define an exit strategy with measurable objectives performance indicators and an implementation timeline, which he submitted to the standing group of partners in the UN Security Council on June nineteen. I'm sorry, June twenty nine. Perhaps most significantly, Haiti's leadership is intent on building its own capacity. This includes a forty percent expansion of the Haitian police this year, and reconstituting the military for the first time in decades. The Haitian government sees holding the first elections in ten years as critical to stability. It's not that just the gangs got stronger, it was that the government got weaker. Haiti's interim government is preparing for national elections, paving the way for an elected government next year. Economically, Haiti's priority is creating an alternative to gang enlistment, US trade preference programs such as Hope Help Act. support a significant number of jobs. Uh, we show the Haitian government's interest in strengthening uh that, and uh would like to see a multi-year reauthorization of Help Hope. Haiti's problems are grave, but progress is achievable this year. The GSF will ramp up to full operations in coming months. The Haitian people and their interim government are determined to regain military and police capacity to protect their own homeland and close the dark chapter. Now is the time to solidify the path for Haiti's future for their benefit, as well as for the United States and the broader region. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Ranking Member.

Thank you, Ambassador. Uh, Colonel Gronkowski. I now recognize you for any opening statement you'd like to give.

Thank you, sir. Chairman Mast, Ranking Member Meeks, uh, distinguished members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to speak with you today about Haiti and the gang suppression force. I'm pleased to begin today's testimony by informing you that exactly one month ago, the gang suppression force initiated operations to retake territory in Haiti previously controlled by terrorist gangs, resulting in several detainees, weapons seized, and incendiary devices destroyed. This may seem trivial, uh but it represents a significant benchmark for stabilization efforts soon to come. We've learned more about Haitian gangs in the past thirty days than the previous thirty months. Today I will provide a brief overview of the force we designed to address the problem, expected deployment timelines and considerations for the future force. My focus is security, on which all Haitian stability rests. Let's begin with a clear articulation of the problem. The absence of governance in Haiti has created opportunities for informal power structures to thrive through use of force financial independence, intimidation and terrorism. Over twenty different gang leaders deploy their foot soldiers fight for control over Haiti's territory and dwindling resources. These gang leaders whose forces outnumber Haitian security force personnel dictate daily life in the territories they control by providing security, jobs, school supplies, and condolence payments. This this thread is multifaceted and has become entrenched within the corrupt fabric of Haiti's political and economic elites. These are not simple gangs that can be jailed and This threat requires a predominantly military solution. And we designed the GSF to address the threat I just described, differentiating it from previous multinational force interventions. The international peacekeeping apparatus is ineffective against this threat. Instead, unlike the previous MSS, we opted for an intelligence-driven, military-heavy solution to conduct counter-gang operations. In collaboration with our Haitian partners, we designed this novel approach to source military and police forces from the international community, and we challenged the UN to adapt their historic practices in a manner to sustain these forces in austere environments. This new hybrid approach, forward leaning security operations underpinned by the UN logistical support structure offers the best chance of regaining territorial control from the gangs. So how's it working out? To manage expectations, operations just began in mid-June and have far to go. This year we selected a special representative, Jack Christofides, to lead the mission, as well as Force Commander Major General Erdogan Batsuri, uh and his headquarter staff from Mongolia. We adjudicated over seventeen thousand five hundred pledges from nineteen countries to optimize a fighting force of five thousand, five hundred personnel from ten countries. Together with the UN we have deployed about eleven hundred security personnel from six of these countries since April, and are preparing to open our second area of operations. We expect to be at full operational capability this fall, distinct from full strength. As with any new approach, this mission has its challenges. We continue to push the UN to think creatively and repackage its concept of support in Haiti to evolve from peacekeeping to direct support to security operations. This hybrid UN supported approach results and considerable savings to the American taxpayer, from over one billion dollars over two years to a hundred and nineteen million annually, reflecting a seventy-eight percent annual reduction, while also attracting massive interest from troop and police contributing countries due to familiarity and experience with the UN brand. We still have a few months until we are at full capacity, but there are indications the force we have designed will achieve its objectives. Our goal now is to get the remaining personnel from the other four countries deployed as fast as possible to consolidate gains and hold the territory we clear, while diplomatically we pursue mandate renewal. We must simultaneously facilitate growth of the Haitian security forces, this is critical, while integrating them into operations so we can secu so they can secure their own country. Through full implement implementation of the GSF, the international community places Haitian security forces in the best position to

Thank you, Colonel. Gonna alternate between Republicans and Democrats for uh about five minutes of questions for each person. Gonna begin with Representative Smith.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. And uh welcome to both of you. First of all, I wanna Um, Mike Kozak has been a leader for over fifty years. I've worked with him with the OSCE, worked with him when he was the ambassador to Belarus. And I've certainly been working on that issue my, much of my time here. Uh, and so many other important postings, um, Havana, Cuba, you know, has the chief omission, a wealth of experience, and not just knowledge but a wisdom. And I wanna thank you for that tremendous leadership you have shown over so many years. And welcome, uh, uh to you colonel as well um just a couple of questions you know i i i'm the author of the trafficking victims protection act as a matter of fact right now caucasian mafunni and i are trying to reauthorize it with a frederick douglass act uh we're hoping to get it on the floor soon uh but haiti has been a special case of of trafficking years ago i held a series of hearings with nancy brevard and others from the airline ambassadors uh international and they broke up trafficking rings coming they law enforcement did but they were the eyes and ears as flight attendants when all of these kids were coming up from haiti uh being sold into modern day slavery as as little kids uh horrific abuse and i'm wondering if you know with all of the work you're doing and trying to do um if you could shed any light on what's being done now to try to mitigate this exploitation of of children and women uh through trafficking rings secondly the church Uh, I don't wanna go too long, we only got five minutes, but the churches, what role are they playing? Cuz usually the faith community can play a very positive role. Uh, obviously when the guys are running around with the gangs with guns, it's harder. Uh, obviously, and uh, when the, as you said, it's not that the gangs have gotten stronger, but the government has gotten weaker. So, I wonder what we can do to further fortify their message from the pulpit, uh, from the cardinals to the, to the priest in the pulpit, and, and every other part of the faith community. And finally, you know, I remember when the Harlan County was turned back, uh that ship, uh because there were a few protesters out on the docks. Uh the mistakes that were made with the Clintons after the horrific earthquake. I read books about it, uh and and have spoken about it and and and uh when they didn't really do the job of rebuilding that should have been done. Uh and I I just hope, you know I know we're gonna get it right this time, at least I believe we will, uh especially with your wisdom being brought to bear on all of this. So um Trafficking, children, and the church.

Good, thank you, uh, Super-Chairman, also from your from past days, and thanks for those kind words. On the trafficking front, I mean, this is what we're we're trying to shut off throughout the whole region, not just in Haiti, but as you say, that there's been some particularly horrific uh abuses in the in the past. But, you know, but our ability to do have stop the illegal immigration coming in, uh, I think we've we've helped in that respect. But the other thing you find is that the same groups that are trafficking humans are trafficking drugs they're trafficking arms in the other direction and so on. And one of the reasons that the administration uh declared the gangs to be uh foreign terrorist organizations was that that gives us some extra tools. We can we can prosecute people in the United States who provide material support to such an organization. Um, and we've seen some, uh, evidence of this already with, uh, a couple of the Haitian elite type leaders who were living in the United States and financing, uh, these kinds of, uh, bad activities in Haiti, um, losing their immigration status and having to, to leave the country. So, uh, there'll be hopefully more of that to come, but we're trying to put a real law enforcement effort on, uh, their Uh, churches, you're absolutely right, are one of the linchpins of the place and they're are trying to, uh, um, stabilize, uh, people. It's interesting though, it's, uh, uh, uh, Mr. Meeks mentioned the need for a Haitian-led solution. When you do polling in Haiti now, something like ninety percent of the population really want an elected government. They wanna pick their own government. They've had too many years of you know, well-intended foreigners picking people for them, usually not on the grounds that they were the gonna be the best leader, but because the people they were picking could cause uh having their gang connections could cause disarray in the streets and said, oh, we need to bring them into the government in order to avoid them trying to overthrow the government. Bad idea. That that that has not worked out at all well. So I think that's what we're hearing a lot from the churches too, is let's let's get moving Uh, on, and, and we usually get reflected in the, in the views of the, the Prime Minister of Haiti, that uh, that elections are very, very important uh, to get to that kind of Haitian-led government. And then finally, I will observe I was around when the Harling County steamed away. That was a, a very, very bad day, 'cause it uh, totally discredited uh, the, the whole international effort at the time. So, uh, uh, do we, you know, we We do not want that to happen again. Uh, this this time we gotta make it work. And make it work, uh, so that you end up with a with a Haiti that's Haitian-led and stable. Again, I put in a plug for the for the Hope-Help Act because I think our view is the way to get Haiti to be self-sufficient and so on is is it's gotta be able to attract investment that will create jobs and so on and not not have it be jobs created by the government with uh with aid funds from from other countries so that that would be my point thank you

Ranking member Meeks

Thank you Mister Chairman. First current I wanna thank you um I want you to know that I am one hundred percent support and behind you and want you to be successful because without security we can't make the next step and so that's really important uh and I'm ready to work with anybody that's gonna make that happen so I listen to you intently I don't disagree with you, I think that we need to make sure that we have the security on the ground, so that we can then have the implementation that the ambassador was just talking about of creating a Haitian-led government but we can't do it without security, so I just want you to know to know that. Now my my concern goes towards, Mister Ambassador, um that on November twenty eighth, the DHS issued a notice terminating TPS for Haiti. uh which is really my focus and they said that there are no extraordinary and temporary conditions in Haiti that prevent the Haitian nationals from returning in safety so i wanna know did you know after secretary uh Noam made the decision uh she said she did it with consultation of other partners etcetera but can you tell me was the state department of state consulted uh by secretary Noam Noam Noam's decision, uh, to terminate TPS for Haiti, were you consulted or anything of that nature? I know what you, where you were previously and, Mister Smith talked about your great work, humanitarian work, but were you consulted, uh, on that at all? Mister, Mister Ambassador.

W- were we consulted on?

Yes.

I don't believe so, sir. But, uh, but I would observe that you have to look at the security. I mean, we do provide DHS with country conditions uh reports and in uh Haiti there as the Prime Minister will tell you out of the ten uh departments of Haiti, he said we could have elections and seven of them tomorrow that they're that they're stable and and uh life goes on as normal it's it's Port-au-Prince and

But what

Artibonite and and the west that are that are the problem areas.

Which is huge up y- where the most the population is, but what I'm really trying to be focused on here is you know we've got over uh uh three hundred thousand haitians that may be pushed back into into haiti given the conditions that i heard the colonel talking about uh earlier uh and you you know there was for example roughly fifty six hundred homicides in twenty twenty four alone almost a hundred and fifty seven percent increase from twenty twenty two according to the un and the state department's own travel advisory rates are part of prince as a critical threat crime for location. So I was wondering, and I don't know whether you can or not, you know, and at the same time, you know, the president of course, uh the administration has expanded refugee admissions for white Afrikaners from South Africa, uh citing safety concerns there, but I see and hear and listen to you intently of the safety concerns, uh that are taking place currently in Haiti. Um I don't know if if if you can walk the committee through department's assessment of Haiti uh that may have led the administration to conclude that it was safe to end TTP S for Haitians. Um, you know, this is something that uh members uh in my constituency have a large Haitian constituency, are asking me ex- you know, intensively, so I was wondering if there's a way that you can uh give us a walk us through uh how it's now safe for these individuals uh uh uh determine, how it was determined. that it was safe for these individuals to, to come back to Haiti.

Well Congressman, I'm not the greatest expert on TPS, but I would observe that with respect to all these d- different countries that had TPS, many of these, uh, had, have been temporary, they'd have gone on for decades. We had in Central America, TPS status that was granted because of hurricanes that occurred in the nineties. Uh, in the case of Haiti, I think it was the earthquake in twenty ten.

I understand.

Uh,

I don't mean to cut you off, I just I'm limited on time.

so it's Yep.

Uh, but because, you know, you're talking about an influx, and I don't see if they have an additional three hundred thousand people coming in, given the scenario, that's gonna help, uh, even help the kernel with what he's trying to do. Uh, the other thing that I just wanted to ask real quickly, you know, uh, I passed, I had a bell that passed, uh, in a bipartisan way called the Haitian Criminal Collusion uh, passed with bipartisan support, so then it was the intent of the bill is to go after those individuals, uh, that, uh, uh, that are running the corrupt political and economic networks that finance the gangs, traffic weapons, and profit from Haiti's instability. Cuz it seems to me that they've gone by with impunity, and I think that we've gotta go on. So I was wondering if you could tell me, if you know, have any individuals been sanctioned in Haiti in response to the bipartisan report? Uh, you know, that or supporting putting the money in. Uh, I haven't heard of any, but do you know whether or not anybody has been sanctioned?

Mm-hmm. Well, I mentioned the the uh people who were expelled from the United States. They lost their LPR status because of of that kind of behavior. Um, others have others have been sanctioned. I'm cannot tell you which of the different legal authorities were used for those sanctions but there there are people who have Ofec sanctions on them because of uh of their financing of the of the gangs and and that maybe

So let me just say this, I think it's important that if someone has been sanctioned, we need to know their names. The Haitian people need to know their names. Because when I talk to the Haitian people on on the ground, they say these people continue to walk around with impunity. Uh, and that makes them afraid also. So if, I mean, that's why we passed this bipartisan way, those names should be given to you, those names should be exposed to the general public, so that the Haitian people in America know that these folks are not walking around with impunity and that we're gonna make sure that they are held accountable for supporting financing et cetera, the violence that continues to take place in Haiti. We gotta get rid of them so that we so the kernel can be successful, we create the institution that we have the elections that you're talking about. I yield back. Representative Wilson.

Thank you very much uh Chairman Brian Mast for bringing these uh tremendous witnesses here today on such an important issue. And in particular Ambassador Kozak Uh, you're so appreciated with your service in Minsk, Havana, now helping focus on Port-au-Prince. Uh, we're all hopeful for fair and free elections in these countries of Belarus, Cuba, and uh, even Haiti, and um, nobody can accuse you of being sent to um, uh, luxurious Caribbean uh, uh, uh, operations. Uh, with that in mind too, I'm so grateful for ranking member, uh, Mikes, uh, who is promoting today bipartisanship with Chairman Brian Mast. An ambassador, the administration has called the Biden era MSS mission an ineffective boondoggle. It costs the American taxpayers nearly one billion dollars to field roughly one thousand personnel, mostly police, with no mandate to take on the gangs. And can you verify again one more time how much per uh patrolman that is?

Yeah, I I think it it works out to about half a million dollars per person per year uh not not a very good uh uh ratio there for

well that's just startling and the american people need to know that even

yup

uh congressman scott perry didn't know that and so it's uh an amazing fact uh sadly uh to be acknowledged when the final contingent fell fell left in april the gangs controlled more territory than when the mission began what is the State Department's assessment of what went wrong and what does that failure tell us, how the United States should approach missions going forward.

Uh, I'll look to uh, Colonel to to comment too, but I'd just say from my standpoint, I think it's it's both quantity and quality that you a a thousand people was not nearly enough to uh to deal with the with the threat that existed. And on the other hand, it's the mandate. They they were supposed to be there to support the Haitian police, which is completely, it was a completely decimated uh bunch. Um and and not to be able to go out and run operations of their own. So that's what we've tried to correct with the with the gang suppression forces, to make it much bigger. In the meantime, too, our colleagues in the Bureau of uh uh Narcotics and and Law Enforcement uh have been working with the Haitian government to train up uh another uh four thousand police by the by next year so this I mean the police right now, on the books, I think it's about thirteen thousand the actual people who show up on any given day are probably more like six thousand, and of those something like four hundred do most of the fighting so the whole idea here is to to get the Haitians beefed up but also to have the have the gang suppression force sizeable enough and with a a more military kinetic type mandate where they can go out, clear these guys, bad guys out of an area, and then you and then have enough Haitian forces to come in and take it. The the Kenyans would go on patrol and mix it up with the gangs, but as soon as they left, the gangs were right back there again, cuz there was nobody to hold the the territory at all. So, this those were some of the problems that they they faced, as well as just having a uh extreme uh tooth to tail ratio uh in favor of the tail. Over.

Indeed, I'm glad uh general that all this is being monitored. Um Bangladesh should be applauded uh ambassador to provide the gang suppression task force largest contingent, nearly sixteen hundred personnel. And the schedule counts on more than double the force in September. But Bangladesh had to Froze freezes deployment once this spring, and now it's being delayed again. What can we do to help the courageous people of Bangladesh to be able to participate in general?

Yeah, thank you Congressman. Uh, that's a good question. Uh, I'm very uh thrilled to to state today that uh, Bangladesh is in good shape for the deployment. Their deployment is back on track. Uh, they have conducted a two reconnaissance visits to Port-au-Prince. uh, including with uh, with their senior leadership, uh, they have re-pledged all the forces uh, that were pledged previously, and they are on full glide slope to deploy as anticipated. So we're in good position. In fact, I will be traveling to Bangladesh on the eighth of August to do the pre-deployment visit.

Well indeed, it it's so refreshing uh, refreshing to see the country of Bangladesh uh, have such a participation and be so recognized by the United States and uh even in the western hemisphere. So thank you for your service and uh and and again assisting the military of Bangladesh, I yield back.

Thank you Representative Wilson. My understanding of the of the TPS was actually that it so decimated the police force. Uh that's in part why they were not there to support the MSS. Uh they were uh actually they the police force had to start going to telling people they had to pick up their checks in person. Because so many of them came to the United States and kept collecting their direct deposits, that there were no police there to do the, the work that they were supposed to be doing. Big problem.

Indeed indeed, I was wondering. How are they being paid? Thank you.

Yeah. Uh, Representative Keating.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Uh, Mr. Kozak, uh, uh, it's fair to say, uh, in Haiti there's, uh, there's a fair amount of crime and kidnapping and terrorism and unrest and uh, health care capacity's severely constrained. Uh, don't you agree?

Uh, certainly in the areas that the gangs, uh, have control there's a, uh, a lot of that, that type of behavior.

Yeah, Colonel, that's why you're there and you're doing your work, and we appreciate your work there. Uh, so, uh, i- if that's the case, uh, a- and I, I guess that's why the State Department, uh, war- you know, issued a do not travel advisory in the area because of those severe risks. Doesn't that make sense? Do you agree with that?

Yes, sir, but I would I would note that the the do not travel advisory or any of our travel advisories are aimed at the risks posed to American visiting a country not necessarily to the

So so you're trying to say the cri- you're saying all the crime and everything else there is just on Americans and not on other Asians?

No, but if you're if you're looking at if you're looking at kidnappings and so on

Right.

Americans are juicy targets for kidnappers because you can extort a lot of uh

Sure, but But but the crimes are there. And and there are also crimes imposed on other Haitians that are there, and other peoples that are there. I mean, they're just not saying let's do crime to Americans.

Uh yes. Their their crime

So that being the case

crime affects uh people across the board, but the again the travel advisory is aimed at Americans.

So so let me answer this. If I could If the crime is so severe and we have a colonel uh who's you know leading an effort uh at uh suppression of the those gangs then with three hundred and fifty thousand Haitians uh who uh are on TPS, temporary protective status here, and these are ad- adults and uh and they have work permits uh and they're in positions uh in my state and others uh of critical need, long-term care, hospitals, hospitalities, agriculture, I mean these are people that are here so Why? What's the purpose? There's a contradiction obviously in the staff. It's it's not safe. We have a task force, uh a gang suppression force there, militarily. And these people were given status because of that danger. Now, it's all of a sudden safe to send them back? Can you explain uh uh that contradiction? It's an obvious contradiction.

Uh Congressman, I would I would Say, uh, note for, uh, and I don't know the figures for Haiti exactly, but when I look at TPS beneficiaries in other countries, usually one thing you'll find is that a great deal of that total number are people who've already adjusted status and have LPR status in the United States. So they probably won't be going back.

But the the

Um, there's

the TPS people are, and there's three hundred and fifty thousand uh Haitians in that regard,

Yeah, but the, what I, what I'm saying is,

and I can tell you right now.

what I'm saying is, when you look at three hundred and fifty thousand, if you dig deeper in your figures you'll find those were beneficiaries originally, but many of them will have adjusted status during the decades that they were in the United States and so that that's not somebody who's going back.

Well the,

Um.

they're being told these people are now having to give their employers notice right now. They're saying, hey, they're sending me back. I, and we're hearing uh from these employers, we're hearing from coworkers. We're hearing from chambers of commerce and industry leaders uh about that but, and that's important to us here in the United States, but they're also in terms of helping the people in Haiti, so many of these people are sending back remittances, you know they're working, they're saving, they're scrounging for what they have, and they're sending it back to their families there to help them. So uh why is not, that's not a good thing? They're here, we're getting help. They're here because they were in danger, many of them were targeted, and as the colonel knows, These people from the early ages, eight, nine years old, many of them are uh already being pressured into a uh a a gang activities and future gang activities. So i- how can we take a win-win situation where we're helping people, helping the United States, helping our economy, and helping Haitians because that money is coming back to help support families. We're taking a win-win situation, and you know what this administration is doing? It's making that win-win situation lose lose. I mean, we're here with the State Department, and I'll I'll say the State Department acted with its advisory, uh but what about the other administration uh members? Are you in cont- contact at all with Stephen Miller? Have you ever talked to Stephen Miller?

Ye- yes.

And what is he, d does he have this concern?

Uh not not uh not on this particular topic, but let me let me uh comment on what you,