[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 311 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. CON. RES. 311

Expressing the sense of Congress that the United States should continue 
to actively pursue efforts to achieve a full accounting of all members 
of the Armed Forces who remain unaccounted for from previous conflicts, 
 particularly the Korean War and the Vietnam War, and to continue and 
maintain programs and procedures for achieving a full accounting of all 
military personnel who become prisoners of war or missing in action in 
                           future conflicts.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 13, 2000

  Mr. Saxton (for himself, Mr. Andrews, Mr. Franks of New Jersey, Mr. 
    Smith of New Jersey, and Mr. LoBiondo) submitted the following 
     concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
  International Relations, and in addition to the Committee on Armed 
Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 
   each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the 
                jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
Expressing the sense of Congress that the United States should continue 
to actively pursue efforts to achieve a full accounting of all members 
of the Armed Forces who remain unaccounted for from previous conflicts, 
 particularly the Korean War and the Vietnam War, and to continue and 
maintain programs and procedures for achieving a full accounting of all 
military personnel who become prisoners of war or missing in action in 
                           future conflicts.

Whereas the United States has long-standing programs and procedures for 
        searching for and accounting for members of the Armed Forces and other 
        persons who as a result of a military conflict are placed in a missing 
        status;
Whereas those programs and procedures include joint research and, in some cases, 
        remains recovery operations with the governments of North Korea, Russia, 
        and other countries to account for United States military personnel who 
        engaged in activities related to the Korean War, with the governments of 
        Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries to account for United States 
        military personnel who engaged in activities related to the Vietnam War, 
        and with the government of Russia to account for United States military 
        personnel who engaged in activities related to the Cold War;
Whereas the Department of Defense estimates that there are over 10,000 members 
        of the Armed Forces and others who as a result of activities during the 
        Korean War or the Vietnam War were placed in a missing status or a 
        prisoner of war status, or who were determined to have been killed in 
        action although the body was not recovered, and who remain unaccounted 
        for;
Whereas since 1996 the United States has recovered the remains of 42 United 
        States servicemembers from North Korea, nine of whom were recovered as 
        recently as 1998;
Whereas through the work of the United States-Russia Joint Commission on POW/
        MIAs, the remains of 18 United States servicemembers whose aircraft were 
        shot down during the Cold War have been recovered and identified, with 
        more than 120 recovered remains still unaccounted for;
Whereas recent advances in forensic medicine and DNA analysis technology have 
        improved the ability of the Department of Defense to identify the 
        remains of recovered unknowns;
Whereas, notwithstanding the matters stated in the foregoing, the Defense 
        Missing Persons Office of the Department of Defense has prepared a draft 
        of a long-term strategic plan to consolidate the personnel recovery and 
        accounting operations of the Department of Defense by 2004 which, if 
        implemented, could result in a reduction of United States search and 
        recovery efforts for unaccounted persons; and
Whereas the United States should continue to actively pursue efforts to achieve 
        a full accounting of unaccounted for persons from past wars, including 
        recovery and identification of remains: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That it is the sense of Congress--
            (1) that the United States should continue to actively 
        pursue a full accounting of all members of the Armed Forces 
        (and others) who remain unaccounted for from past conflicts 
        (particularly the Korean War and the Vietnam War) and, as part 
        of efforts to continue to actively pursue such a full 
        accounting--
                    (A) the Secretary of Defense should continue at 
                current levels activities to analyze, investigate, 
                search for, and account for persons who are unaccounted 
                for from such conflicts and who were at any time 
                classified as a prisoner of war or missing in action or 
                who were determined to have been killed in action 
                although the body was not recovered; and
                    (B) the United States should continue to declassify 
                Department of Defense documents and to release 
                intelligence information held by agencies of the 
                Government to the extent that that information relates 
                to cases of such persons; and
            (2) that the United States should continue to take steps 
        necessary for pursuing, in the case of any future military 
        conflict, a full accounting of all personnel who in such a 
        conflict are classified at any time as a prisoner of war or 
        missing in action.
                                 <all>