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S.326
104th CONGRESS
1st Session
To prohibit United States military assistance and arms transfers to
foreign governments that are undemocratic, do not adequately
protect human rights, are engaged in acts of armed aggression, or
are not fully participating in the United Nations Register of
Conventional Arms.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 1 (legislative day, January 30), 1995
Mr. Hatfield (for himself, Mr. Dorgan, Mr. Feingold, Mr. Bumpers,
and Mr. Harkin) introduced the following bill; which was read
twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
A BILL
To prohibit United States military assistance and arms transfers to
foreign governments that are undemocratic, do not adequately
protect human rights, are engaged in acts of armed aggression, or
are not fully participating in the United Nations Register of
Conventional Arms.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the `Code of Conduct on Arms Transfers
Act of 1995'.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) Approximately 40,000,000 people, over 75 percent
civilians, died as a result of civil and international wars
fought with conventional weapons during the 45 years of the
Cold War, demonstrating that conventional weapons can in fact
be weapons of mass destruction.
(2) Conflict has actually increased in the post-Cold War era,
with 34 major wars in progress during 1993.
(3) War is both a human tragedy and an ongoing economic
disaster affecting the entire world, including the United
States and its economy, because it decimates both local
investment and potential export markets.
(4) International trade in conventional weapons increases the
risk and impact of war in an already over-militarized world,
creating far more costs than benefits for the United States
economy through increased United States defense and foreign
assistance spending and reduced demand for United States
civilian exports.
(5) The newly established United Nations Register of
Conventional Arms can be an effective first step in support of
limitations on the supply of conventional weapons to developing
countries, and compliance with its reporting requirements by a
foreign government can be an integral tool in determining the
worthiness of such government for the receipts of United States
military assistance and arms transfers.
(6) It is in the national security and economic interests of
the United States to reduce dramatically the $1,038,000,000,000
that all countries spend on armed forces every year,
$242,000,000,000 of which is spent by developing countries, an
amount equivalent to 4 times the total bilateral and
multilateral foreign assistance such countries receive every
year.
(7) According to the Congressional Research Service of the
Library of Congress, the United States supplies more
conventional weapons to developing countries than all other
countries combined, averaging $14,956,000,000 each year in
agreements to supply such weapons to developing countries since
the end of the Cold War, compared to $7,300,000,000 each year
in such agreements prior to the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
(8) In recent years the vast majority of United States arms
transfers to developing countries are to countries with an
undemocratic form of government whose citizens, according to
the Department of State Country Reports on Human Rights
Practices do not have the ability to peaceably change their
form of government.
(9) Although a goal of United States foreign policy should be
to work with foreign governments and international
organizations to reduce militarization and dictatorship and
therefore prevent conflicts before they arise, during 4 recent
deployments of United States Armed Forces--to the Republic of
Panama, the Persian Gulf, Somalia, and Haiti--the Armed Forces
faced conventional weapons that had been provided or financed
by the United States to undemocratic governments.
(10) The proliferation of conventional arms and conflicts
around the globe is a multilateral problem, and the fact that
the United States has emerged as the world's primary seller of
conventional weapons, together with the world leadership role
of the United States, signifies that the United States is in a
position to seek multilateral restraints on the competition for
and transfers of conventional weapons.
(11) The Congress has the constitutional responsibility to
participate with the executive branch of Government in
decisions to provide military assistance and arms transfers to
a foreign government, and in the formulation of a policy
designed to reduce dramatically the level of international
militarization.
(12) A decision to provide military assistance and arms
transfers to a government that is undemocratic, does not
adequately protect human rights, is currently engaged in acts
of armed aggression, or is not fully participating in the
United Nations Register of Conventional Arms, should require a
higher level of scrutiny than does a decision to provide such
assistance and arms transfers to a government to which these
conditions do not apply.
SEC. 3. PURPOSE.
The purpose of this Act is to provide clear policy guidelines and
congressional responsibility for determining the eligibility of
foreign governments to be considered for United States military
assistance and arms transfers.
SEC. 4. PROHIBITION OF UNITED STATES MILITARY ASSISTANCE AND ARMS
TRANSFERS TO CERTAIN FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS.
(a) Prohibition
: Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c), United States
military assistance and arms transfers may not be provided to a
foreign government for a fiscal year unless the President certifies
to the Congress for that fiscal year that such government meets the
following requirements:
(1) Promotes democracy
: Such government--
(A) was chosen by and permits free and fair elections;
(B) promotes civilian control of the military and
security forces and has civilian institutions controlling
the policy, operation, and spending of all law enforcement
and security institutions, as well as the armed forces;
(C) promotes the rule of law, equality before the law,
and respect for individual and minority rights, including
freedom to speak, publish, associate, and organize; and
(D) promotes the strengthening of political, legislative,
and civil institutions of democracy, as well as autonomous
institutions to monitor the conduct of public officials and
to combat corruption.
(2) Respects human rights
: Such government--
(A) does not engage in gross violations of
internationally recognized human rights, including--
(i) extrajudicial or arbitrary executions;
(ii) disappearances;
(iii) torture or severe mistreatment;
(iv) prolonged arbitrary imprisonment;
(v) systematic official discrimination on the basis
of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, national origin,
or political affiliation; and
(vi) grave breaches of international laws of war or
equivalent violations of the laws of war in internal
conflicts;
(B) vigorously investigates, disciplines, and prosecutes
those responsible for gross violations of internationally
recognized human rights;
(C) permits access on a regular basis to political
prisoners by international humanitarian organizations such
as the International Committee of the Red Cross;
(D) promotes the independence of the judiciary and other
official bodies that oversee the protection of human rights;
(E) does not impede the free functioning of domestic and
international human rights organizations; and
(F) provides access on a regular basis to humanitarian
organizations in situations of conflict or famine.
(3) Not engaged in certain acts of armed aggression
: Such government is not currently engaged in acts of armed
aggression in violation of international law.
(4) Full participation in united nations register of
conventional arms
: Such government is fully participating in the United Nations
Register of Conventional Arms.
(b) Requirement for Continuing Compliance
: Any certification with respect to a foreign government for a
fiscal year under subsection (a) shall cease to be effective for
that fiscal year if the President certifies to the Congress that
such government has not continued to comply with the requirements
contained in paragraphs (1) through (4) of such subsection.
(c) Exemption
: The prohibition contained in subsection (a) shall not apply with
respect to a foreign government for a fiscal year if--
(1) the President submits a request for an exemption to the
Congress containing a determination that it is in the national
security interest of the United States to provide military
assistance and arms transfers to such government; and
(2) the Congress enacts a law approving such exemption request.
(d) Notification to Congress
: The President shall submit to the Congress initial certifications
under subsection (a) and requests for exemptions under subsection
(c) in conjunction with the submission of the annual request for
enactment of authorizations and appropriations for foreign
assistance programs for a fiscal year and shall, where appropriate,
submit additional or amended certifications and requests for
exemptions at any time thereafter in the fiscal year.
SEC. 5. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS.
It is the sense of the Congress that the Committee on
International Relations of the House of Representatives and the
Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate should hold hearings
on controversial certifications submitted under section 4(a) and
all requests for exemptions submitted under section 4(c).
SEC. 6. UNITED STATES MILITARY ASSISTANCE AND ARMS TRANSFERS DEFINED.
For purposes of this Act, the terms `United States military
assistance and arms transfers' and `military assistance and arms
transfers' means--
(1) assistance under chapter 2 of part II of the Foreign
Assistance Act of 1961 (relating to military assistance),
including the transfer of excess defense articles under
sections 516 through 519 of that Act;
(2) assistance under chapter 5 of part II of the Foreign
Assistance Act of 1961 (relating to international military
education and training);
(3) assistance under the `Foreign Military Financing Program'
under section 23 of the Arms Export Control Act; or
(4) the transfer of defense articles, defense services, or
design and construction services under the Arm Export Control
Act, including defense articles and defense services licensed
or approved for export under section 38 of that Act.
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