[House Document 105-77]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
105th Congress, 1st Session - - - - - - - - - - - House Document 105-77
CONVENTION ON THE PROHIBITION OF THE DEVELOPMENT, PRODUCTION,
STOCKPILING AND USE OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS AND ON THEIR DESTRUCTION
__________
MESSAGE
FROM
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
TRANSMITTING
CERTIFICATION WITH RESPECT TO THE RESOLUTION OF ADVICE AND CONSENT TO
RATIFICATION OF THE CONVENTION ON THE PROHIBITION OF THE DEVELOPMENT,
PRODUCTION, STOCKPILING AND USE OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS AND ON THEIR
DESTRUCTION, ADOPTED BY THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES ON APRIL 24,
1997
April 28, 1997.--Message and accompanying papers referred to the
Committee on International Relations and ordered to be printed
To the Congress of the United States:
In accordance with the resolution of advice and consent to
ratification of the Convention on the Prohibition of the
Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical
Weapons and on Their Destruction, adopted by the Senate of the
United States on April 24, 1997, I hereby certify that:
In connection with Condition (1), Effect of Article XXII,
the United States has informed all other States Parties to the
Convention that the Senate reserves the right, pursuant to the
Constitution of the United States, to give its advice and
consent to ratification of the Convention subject to
reservations, notwithstanding Article XXII of the Convention.
In connection with Condition (7), Continuing vitality of
the Australia Group and National Export Controls: (i) nothing
in the Convention obligates the United States to accept any
modification, change in scope, or weakening of its national
export controls; (ii) the United States understands that the
maintenance of national restrictions on trade in chemicals and
chemical production technology is fully compatible with the
provisions of the Convention, including Article XI(2), and
solely within the sovereign jurisdiction of the United States;
(iii) the Convention preserves the right of State Parties,
unilaterally or collectively, to maintain or impose export
controls on chemicals and related chemical production
technology for foreign policy or national security reasons,
notwithstanding Article XI(2); and (iv) each Australia Group
member, at the highest diplomatic levels, has officially
communicated to the United States Government its understanding
and agreement that export control and nonproliferation measures
which the Australia Group has undertaken are fully compatible
with the provisions of the Convention, including Article XI(2),
and its commitment to maintain in the future such export
controls and nonproliferation measures against non-Australia
Group members.
In connection with Condition (9), Protection of Advanced
Biotechnology, the legitimate commercial activities and
interests of chemical, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical firms
in the United States are not being significantly harmed by the
limitations of the Convention on access to, and production of,
those chemicals and toxins listed in Schedule 1 of the Annex on
chemicals.
In connection with Condition (15), Assistance Under Article
X, the United States shall not provide assistance under
paragraph 7(a) of Article X, and, for any State Party the
government of which is not eligible for assistance under
chapter 2 of part II (relating to military assistance) or
chapter 4 of part II (relating to economic support assistance)
of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961: (i) no assistance under
paragraph 7(b) of Article X will be provided to the State
Party; and (ii) no assistance under paragraph 7(c) of Article X
other than medical antidotes and treatment will be provided to
the State Party.
In connection with Condition (18), Laboratory Sample
Analysis, no sample collected in the United States pursuant to
the Convention will be transferred for analysis to any
laboratory outside the territory of the United States.
In connection with Condition (26), Riot Control Agents, the
United States is not restricted by the Convention in its use of
riot control agents, including the use against combatants who
are parties to a conflict, in any of the following cases: (i)
the conduct of peacetime military operations within an area of
ongoing armed conflict when the United States is not a party to
the conflict (such as recent use of the United States Armed
Forces in Somalia, Bosnia, and Rwanda); (ii) consensual
peacekeeping operations when the use of force is authorized by
the receiving state, including operations pursuant toChapter VI
of the United Nations Charter; and (iii) peacekeeping operations when
force is authorized by the Security Council under Chapter VII of the
United Nations Charter.
In connection with Condition (27), Chemical Weapons
Destruction, all the following conditions are satisfied: (A) I
have agreed to explore alternative technologies for the
destruction of the United States stockpile of chemical weapons
in order to ensure that the United States has the safest, most
effective and environmentally sound plans and programs for
meeting its obligations under the convention for the
destruction of chemical weapons; (B) the requirement in section
1412 of Public Law 99-145 (50 U.S.C. 1521) for completion of
the destruction of the United States stockpile of chemical
weapons by December 31, 2004, will be superseded upon the date
the Convention enters into force with respect to the United
States by the deadline required by the Convention of April 29,
2007; (C) the requirement in Article III(1)(a)(v) of the
Convention for a declaration by each State Party not later than
30 days after the date the Convention enters into force with
respect to that Party, on general plans of the State Party for
destruction of its chemical weapons does not preclude in any
way the United States from deciding in the future to employ a
technology for the destruction of chemical weapons different
than that declared under that Article; and (D) I will consult
with the Congress on whether to submit a request to the
Executive Council of the Organization for an extension of the
deadline for the destruction of chemical weapons under the
Convention, as provided under Part IV(A) of the Annex on
Implementation and Verification to the Convention, if, as a
result of the program of alternative technologies for the
destruction of chemical munitions carried out under section
8065 of the Department ofDefense Appropriations Act of 1997 (as
contained in Public Law 104-208), I determine that alternatives to the
incineration of chemical weapons are available that are safer and more
environmentally sound but whose use would preclude the United States
from meeting the deadlines of the Convention.
In connection with Condition (28), Constitutional
Protection Against Unreasonable Search and Seizure: (i) for any
challenge inspection conducted on the territory of the United
States pursuant to Article IX, where consent has been withheld,
the United States National Authority will first obtain a
criminal search warrant based upon probable cause, supported by
oath or affirmation, and describing with particularity the
place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized;
and (ii) for any routine inspection of a declared facility
under the Convention that is conducted on an involuntary basis
on the territory of the United States, the United States
National Authority first will obtain an administrative search
warrant from a United States magistrate judge.
In accordance with Condition (26) on Riot Control Agents, I
have certified that the United States is not restricted by the
Convention in its use of riot control agents in various
peacetime and peacekeeping operations. These are situations in
which the United States is not engaged in a use of force of a
scope, duration and intensity that would trigger the laws of
war with respect to U.S. forces.
In connection with Condition (4)(A), Cost Sharing
Arrangements, which calls for a report identifying all cost-
sharing arrangements with the Organization, I hereby report
that because the Organization is not yet established and will
not be until after entry into force of the Convention, as of
this date there are no cost-sharing arrangements between the
United States and the Organization to identify. However, we
will be working with the Organization upon its establishment to
develop such arrangements with it and will provide additional
information to the Congress in the annual reports contemplated
by this Condition.
William J. Clinton.
The White House, April 25, 1997.