[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.J. Res. 125 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H.J. RES. 125

 Finding the Government of Iraq in material and unacceptable breach of 
                     its international obligations.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 25, 1998

  Mr. Gingrich  (for himself and Mr. Gilman) introduced the following 
joint resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International 
                               Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                            JOINT RESOLUTION


 
 Finding the Government of Iraq in material and unacceptable breach of 
                     its international obligations.

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 United Nations Security Council Resolution 687 requires that 
        international economic sanctions remain in place until Iraq discloses 
        and destroys its weapons of mass destruction programs and capabilities 
        and undertakes unconditionally never to resume such activities;
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 United Nations Security Council Resolution 715, adopted on October 11, 
        1991, empowered UNSCOM to maintain a long-term monitoring program to 
        ensure 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 seven years;
Whereas in June 1991, Iraqi forces fired on International Atomic Energy Agency 
        inspectors and otherwise obstructed and misled UNSCOM inspectors, 
        resulting in UN Security Council Resolution 707 which found Iraq to be 
        in ``material breach'' of its obligations under United Nations Security 
        Council Resolution 687 for failing to allow UNSCOM inspectors access to 
        a site storing nuclear equipment;
Whereas in January and February of 1992, Iraq rejected plans to install long-
        term monitoring equipment and cameras called for in UN resolutions, 
        resulting in a Security Council Presidential Statement of February 19, 
        1992, which declared that Iraq was in ``continuing material breach'' of 
        its obligations;
Whereas in February of 1992, Iraq continued to obstruct the installation of 
        monitoring equipment, and failed to comply with UNSCOM orders to allow 
        destruction of missiles and other prescribed weapons, resulting in the 
        Security Council Presidential Statement of February 28, 1992, which 
        reiterated that Iraq was in ``continuing material breach'' and noted a 
        ``further material breach'' on account of Iraq's failure to allow 
        destruction of ballistic missile equipment;
Whereas on July 5, 1992, Iraq denied UNSCOM inspectors access to the Iraqi 
        Ministry of Agriculture, resulting in a Security Council Presidential 
        Statement of July 6, 1992, which declared that Iraq was in ``material 
        and unacceptable breach'' of its obligations under UN resolutions;
Whereas in December of 1992 and January of 1993, Iraq violated the southern no-
        fly zone, moved surface to air missiles into the no-fly zone, raided a 
        weapons depot in internationally recognized Kuwaiti territory and denied 
        landing rights to a plane carrying UN weapons inspectors, resulting in a 
        Security Council Presidential Statement of January 8, 1993, which 
        declared that Iraq was in an ``unacceptable and material breach'' of its 
        obligations under UN resolutions;
Whereas in response to continued Iraqi defiance, a Security Council Presidential 
        Statement of January 11, 1993, reaffirmed the previous finding of 
        material breach, followed on January 13 and 18 by allied air raids, and 
        on January 17 with an allied missile attack on Iraqi targets;
Whereas on June 10, 1993, Iraq prevented UNSCOM's installation of cameras and 
        monitoring equipment, resulting in a Security Council Presidential 
        Statement of June 18, 1993, declaring Iraq's refusal to comply to be a 
        ``material and unacceptable breach'';
Whereas on October 6, 1994, Iraq threatened to end cooperation with weapons 
        inspectors if sanctions were not ended, and one day later, massed 10,000 
        troops within 30 miles of the Kuwaiti border, resulting in United 
        Nations Security Council Resolution 949 demanding Iraq's withdrawal from 
        the Kuwaiti border area and renewal of compliance with UNSCOM;
Whereas on April 10, 1995, UNSCOM reported to the Security Council that Iraq had 
        concealed its biological weapons program, and had failed to account for 
        17 tons of biological weapons material resulting in the Security 
        Council's renewal of sanctions against Iraq;
Whereas on July 1, 1995, Iraq admitted to a full scale biological weapons 
        program, but denied weaponization of biological agents, and subsequently 
        threatened to end cooperation with UNSCOM resulting in the Security 
        Council's renewal of sanctions against Iraq;
Whereas on March 8, 11, 14, and 15, 1996, Iraq again barred UNSCOM inspectors 
        from sites containing documents and weapons, in response to which the 
        Security Council issue a Presidential Statement condemning ``clear 
        violations by Iraq of previous Resolutions 687, 707 and 715'';
Whereas from June 11-15, 1996, Iraq repeatedly barred weapons inspectors from 
        military sites, in response to which the Security Council adopted United 
        Nations Security Council Resolution 1060, noting the ``clear violation 
        on United Nations Security Council Resolutions 687, 707 and 715'' and in 
        response to Iraq's continued violations, issued a Presidential statement 
        detailing Iraq's ``gross violation of obligations'';
Whereas in August of 1996, Iraqi troops overran Irbil, in Iraqi Kurdistan, 
        employing more than 30,000 troops and Republican Guards to suppress the 
        Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, in response to which the Security Council 
        briefly suspended implementation on United Nations Security Council 
        Resolution 986, the UN oil for food plan;
Whereas in December of 1996, Iraq prevented UNSCOM from removing 130 Scud 
        missile engines from Iraq for analysis, resulting in a Security Council 
        presidential statement which ``deplore[d]'' Iraq's refusal to cooperate 
        with UNSCOM;
Whereas on April 9, 1997, Iraq violated the no-fly zone in southern Iraq and 
        United Nations Security Council Resolution 670, banning international 
        flights, resulting in a Security Council statement regretting Iraq's 
        lack of ``specific consultation'' with the Council;
Whereas on June 4 and 5, 1997, Iraqi officials on board UNSCOM aircraft 
        interfered with the controls and inspections, endangering inspectors and 
        obstructing the UNSCOM mission, resulting in a UN Security Council 
        presidential statement demanding Iraq end its interference and on June 
        21, 1997, United Nations Security Council Resolution 1115 threatened 
        sanctions on Iraqi officials responsible for these interferences;
Whereas on September 13, 1997, during an inspection mission, an Iraqi official 
        attacked UNSCOM officials engaged in photographing illegal Iraqi 
        activities, resulting in the October 23 1997, adoption of United Nations 
        Security Council Resolution 1134 which threatened a travel ban on Iraqi 
        officials responsible for non-compliance with UN resolutions;
Whereas on October 29, 1997, Iraq announced that it would no longer allow 
        American inspectors working with UNSCOM to conduct inspections in Iraq, 
        blocking UNSCOM teams containing Americans to conduct inspections and 
        threatening to shoot down U.S. U-2 surveillance flights in support of 
        UNSCOM, resulting in a United Nations Security Council Resolution 1137 
        on November 12, 1997, which imposed the travel ban on Iraqi officials 
        and threatened unspecified ``further measures'';
Whereas on November 13, 1997, Iraq expelled U.S. inspectors from Iraq, leading 
        to UNSCOM's decision to pull out its remaining inspectors and resulting 
        in a United Nations Security Council presidential statement demanding 
        Iraq revoke the expulsion;
Whereas on January 15, 1998, an UNSCOM team led by American Scott Ritter was 
        withdrawn from Iraq after being barred for three days by Iraq from 
        conducting inspections, resulting in the adoption on a United Nations 
        Security Council presidential statement deploring Iraq's decision to bar 
        the team as a clear violation of all applicable resolutions;
Whereas, despite clear agreement on the part of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein 
        with 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 United Nations 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;
Whereas on June 24, 1998, UNSCOM Director Richard Butler presented information 
        to the UN Security Council indicating clearly that Iraq, in direct 
        contradiction to information provided to UNSCOM, weaponized the nerve 
        agent VX;
Whereas Iraq's continuing weapons of mass destruction programs threaten vital 
        United States interest and international peace and security; and
Whereas the United States has existing authority to defend United States 
        interests in the Persian Gulf region: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assembled, That the Government of Iraq is 
in material and unacceptable breach of its international obligations, 
and therefore, the President of the United States is urged to act 
accordingly.
                                 <all>