[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 340 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. CON. RES. 340

 Expressing the sense of the Congress that Iraq is in unacceptable and 
   material breach of its international obligations, that the United 
    States should insist on the removal, destruction, or otherwise 
  rendering harmless of Iraq's programs for biological, chemical, and 
 nuclear weapons, and that the United States should fully support the 
right of inspectors with the United Nations Special Commission on Iraq 
    to unfettered and unannounced inspections of suspected weapons 
                              facilities.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 8, 1998

  Mr. DeLay (for himself, Mr. Rohrabacher, Mr. Hefley, Mr. Weldon of 
 Pennsylvania, Mr. Forbes, Mr. Bachus, Mr. Aderholt, Mr. Gibbons, Mr. 
Talent, Mr. Sessions, Mr. Watts of Oklahoma, Mr. Miller of Florida, Mr. 
   Hayworth, Mr. Crane, Mr. Salmon, Mr. Jenkins, and Mr. Peterson of 
Pennsylvania) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
          referred to the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of the Congress that Iraq is in unacceptable and 
   material breach of its international obligations, that the United 
    States should insist on the removal, destruction, or otherwise 
  rendering harmless of Iraq's programs for biological, chemical, and 
 nuclear weapons, and that the United States should fully support the 
right of inspectors with the United Nations Special Commission on Iraq 
    to unfettered and unannounced inspections of suspected weapons 
                              facilities.

Whereas hostilities in Operation Desert Storm ended on February 28, 1991, and 
        the conditions governing the cease-fire were specified in United Nations 
        Security Council Resolutions 686 (March 2, 1991) and 687 (April 3, 
        1991);
Whereas Security Council Resolution 687 requires that international economic 
        sanctions remain in place until Iraq discloses and destroys its programs 
        for weapons of mass destruction and commits unconditionally never to 
        resume such programs;
Whereas Resolution 687 established the United Nations Special Commission on Iraq 
        (UNSCOM) to uncover all aspects of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction 
        programs and tasked the Director General of the International Atomic 
        Energy Agency to locate and remove or destroy all nuclear weapons 
        systems, subsystems, or material from Iraq;
Whereas Security Council Resolution 715, adopted on October 11, 1991, empowered 
        UNSCOM to maintain a long-term monitoring program designed to ensure 
        that Iraq's weapons of mass destruction programs are dismantled and not 
        restarted;
Whereas Iraq has consistently fought to hide the full extent of its weapons 
        programs and has systematically made false declarations to the Security 
        Council and to UNSCOM regarding those programs, and has systematically 
        obstructed weapons inspections for 7 years;
Whereas on April 10, 1995, UNSCOM reported to the Security Council that Iraq had 
        concealed its biological weapons program and failed to account for 17 
        tons of biological weapons material, and the Security Council 
        subsequently renewed sanctions against Iraq;
Whereas on July 1, 1995, Iraq admitted to a full-scale biological weapons 
        program, but denied incorporating biological agents into weapons and 
        subsequently threatened to end cooperation with UNSCOM, and the Security 
        Council subsequently renewed sanctions against Iraq;
Whereas in December 1996, Iraq prevented UNSCOM from removing 130 Scud missile 
        engines from Iraq, and the Security Council issued a Presidential 
        Statement deploring Iraq's refusal to cooperate with UNSCOM;
Whereas the Security Council has repeatedly demanded that Iraq end its 
        obstruction of UNSCOM, including in Resolutions 1060 (June 12, 1996), 
        1115 (June 21, 1996), 1134 (October 23, 1997), and 1137 (November 12, 
        1997);
Whereas on January 16, 1998, an UNSCOM team led by American Scott Ritter was 
        withdrawn from Iraq after being barred for 3 days by Iraq from 
        conducting inspections, resulting in the issuance of a Security Council 
        Presidential Statement deploring Iraq's decision to bar the team as a 
        clear violation of all applicable resolutions;
Whereas despite a clear agreement between Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and 
        United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan to grant access to all sites 
        and fully cooperate with UNSCOM, and the adoption on March 2, 1998, of 
        Security Council Resolution 1154, warning that any violation of the 
        agreement with Annan would have the ``severest consequences'' for Iraq, 
        Iraq has continued to actively conceal weapons and weapons programs, 
        provide misinformation, and otherwise deny UNSCOM inspectors access to 
        suspected weapons facilities;
Whereas President Clinton warned at that time that if Saddam Hussein defied the 
        UNSCOM inspectors ``and we fail to act . . . he will conclude that the 
        international community has lost its will. He will then conclude that he 
        can go right on and do more to rebuild an arsenal of devastating 
        destruction. And some day, some way, I guarantee you he'll use the 
        arsenal.'';
Whereas United States Secretary of State Madeleine Albright also stated at the 
        time that if Saddam Hussein ``reneges on this deal, there will be no 
        question that force is the only way to go'';
Whereas on June 24, 1998, UNSCOM Director Richard Butler presented information 
        to the United Nations Security Council indicating clearly that traces of 
        the nerve agent VX had been discovered by UNSCOM in Iraqi missile 
        warheads and that Iraq, contrary to information provided by Iraq to 
        UNSCOM, had incorporated VX into weapons;
Whereas the Iraqi Government has since admitted making 3.9 tons of VX while 
        continuing to deny ever incorporating any into a weapon;
Whereas on August 5, 1998, the Iraqi Government said it would halt cooperation 
        with most inspections until the United Nations Security Council 
        eliminated the economic sanctions imposed on Iraq after it invaded 
        Kuwait in 1990;
Whereas on August 26, 1998, UNSCOM inspection team leader Scott Ritter resigned 
        his post citing ``interference and manipulation usually coming from the 
        highest levels of the [Clinton] Administration's national security 
        team'' that undermined UNSCOM's ability to inspect suspected weapons 
        facilities;
Whereas Mr. Ritter testified before Congress that interference from the United 
        States and the United Kingdom has given the appearance that UNSCOM is 
        conducting unhindered weapons inspections when in fact such inspections 
        are not occurring;
Whereas Mr. Ritter also testified that it would take Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein 
        only 6 months to reconstitute his chemical weapons capability and the 
        ballistic missiles to deliver them;
Whereas Mr. Ritter also noted that the appearance of arms control is more 
        dangerous than no arms control at all;
Whereas reports in the news media cite Mr. Ritter as telling the Washington 
        Institute for Near East Policy that Iraq has 3 ``technologically 
        complete'' nuclear bombs that only lack the fissile material to make 
        them operational;
Whereas the Security Council voted on September 9, 1998, to suspend any further 
        periodic reviews of the economic sanctions imposed on Iraq after the 
        1991 Persian Gulf War;
Whereas the United States spends billions of dollars each year to enforce United 
        Nations sanctions on Iraq; and
Whereas Iraq's continuing weapons of mass destruction programs threaten vital 
        United States interests and international peace and security, and make a 
        mockery of the sacrifices made during the Gulf War: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That it is the sense of the Congress that Iraq is in material and 
unacceptable breach of its international obligations, and therefore--
            (1) the President is urged to take appropriate action, in 
        accordance with the Constitution and laws of the United States, 
        to bring Iraq into compliance with its international 
        obligations;
            (2) the President should insist on the removal, 
        destruction, or rendering harmless of Iraq's programs for 
        biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons;
            (3) the President should fully support the right of 
        inspectors of the United Nations Special Commission on Iraq to 
        unfettered and unannounced inspections of suspected weapons 
        facilities; and
            (4) the President should not renege on past warnings, 
        issued by the President, the Secretary of State, and the 
        Secretary of Defense, that the United States is committed to 
        using military force, if necessary, to punish Iraq for 
        interfering with or obstructing UNSCOM's weapons inspections.
                                 <all>