    [Senate Treaty Document 114-14]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

    114th Congress  }                                        {  Treaty Doc.
    SENATE
    2d Session     }                                        {       114-14
    _______________________________________________________________________

                             THE ARMS TRADE TREATY

                                   __________

                                    MESSAGE

                                      from

                         THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

                                  transmitting

    THE ARMS TRADE TREATY, DONE AT NEW YORK ON APRIL 2, 2013, AND SIGNED BY
                    THE UNITED STATES ON SEPTEMBER 25, 2013

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     December 9, 2016.--Treaty was read the first time, and together with
    the accompanying papers, referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
              and ordered to be printed for the use of the Senate

                                  ----------

                     U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE

    69-118                    WASHINGTON : 2016

                             LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

                                  ----------

                                     The White House, December 9, 2016.

    To the Senate of the United States:
        With a view to receiving the advice and consent of the
    Senate to ratification, subject to certain declarations and
    understandings set forth in the enclosed report, I transmit
    herewith the Arms Trade Treaty, done at New York on April 2,
    2013, and signed by the United States on September 25, 2013. I
    also transmit, for the information of the Senate, the report of
    the Secretary of State with respect to the Treaty, which
    contains a detailed article-by-article analysis of the Treaty.
        The Treaty is designed to regulate the international trade
    in conventional arms--including small arms, tanks, combat
    aircraft, and warships--and to reduce the risk that
    international arms transfers will be used to commit atrocities,
    without impeding the legitimate arms trade. It will contribute
    to international peace and security, will strengthen the
    legitimate international trade in conventional arms, and is
    fully consistent with rights of U.S. citizens (including those
    secured by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution).
    United States national control systems and practices to
    regulate the international transfer of conventional arms
    already meet or exceed the requirements of the Treaty, and no
    further legislation is necessary to comply with the Treaty. A
    key goal of the Treaty is to persuade other States to adopt
    national control systems for the international transfer of
    conventional arms that are closer to our own high standards.
        By providing a basis for insisting that other countries
    improve national control systems for the international transfer
    of conventional arms, the Treaty will help reduce the risk that
    international transfers of specific conventional arms and items
    will be abused to carry out the world's worst crimes, including
    genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. It will be
    an important foundational tool in ongoing efforts to prevent
    the illicit proliferation of conventional weapons around the
    world, which creates instability and supports some of the
    world's most violent regimes, terrorists, and criminals. The
    Treaty commits States Parties to establish and maintain a
    national system for the international transfer of conventional
    arms and to implement provisions of the Treaty that establish
    common international standards for conducting the international
    trade in conventional arms in a responsible manner. The Treaty
    is an important first step in bringing other countries up
    towards our own high national standards that already meet or
    exceed those of the Treaty.
        The Treaty will strengthen our security without undermining
    legitimate international trade in conventional arms. The Treaty
    reflects the realities of the global nature of the defense
    supply chain in today's world. It will benefit U.S. companies
    by requiring States Parties to apply a common set of standards
    in regulating the defense trade, which establishes a more level
    playing field for U.S. industry. Industry also will benefit
    from the international transparency required by the Treaty,
    allowing U.S. industry to be better informed in advance of the
    national regulations of countries with which it is engaged in
    trade. This will provide U.S. industry with a clearer view of
    the international trading arena, fostering its ability to make
    more competitive and responsible business decisions based on
    more refined strategic analyses of the risks, including risks
    of possible diversion or potential gaps in accountability for
    international arms transfers, and the associated mitigation
    measures to reduce such risks in a given market.
        The Treaty explicitly reaffirms the sovereign right of each
    country to decide for itself, pursuant to its own
    constitutional and legal system, how to deal with conventional
    arms that are traded exclusively within its borders. It also
    recognizes that legitimate purposes and interests exist for
    both individuals and governments to own, transfer, and use
    conventional arms. The Treaty is fully consistent with the
    domestic rights of U.S. citizens, including those guaranteed
    under the U.S. Constitution.
        I recommend that the Senate give early and favorable
    consideration to the Treaty, and that it give its advice and
    consent to ratification of the Treaty, subject to the
    understandings and declarations set forth in the accompanying
    report.

                                                        Barack Obama.
                              LETTER OF SUBMITTAL

                                  ----------

                                           Department of State,
                                      Washington, DC, December 5, 2016.
    The President,
    The White House.
        The President: I have the honor to submit to you, with a
    view to its transmittal to the Senate for advice and consent to
    ratification, subject to the understandings and declarations
    set forth in the enclosed Overview, the Arms Trade Treaty (the
    ``ATT'' or the ``Treaty''), which I signed at the United
    Nations in New York on September 25, 2013. The Treaty entered
    into force on December 24, 2014. Also enclosed is an Overview
    of the Treaty, which includes a detailed article-by-article
    analysis of the Treaty.
        This Treaty will enhance the national security of the
    United States. The United States has long sought to promote
    greater standards for the international transfer of
    conventional arms, and the ATT is a multilateral treaty that
    requires each State Party to establish a national control
    system to regulate the international transfer of conventional
    arms covered by the Treaty, as well as the export of parts and
    components and ammunition/munitions covered by the Treaty. It
    will provide leverage for insisting that other countries
    improve their national control systems for the international
    transfer of conventional arms and thereby help reduce the risk
    that international transfers of specific conventional arms and
    items will be abused to carry out the world's worst crimes,
    including genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. It
    will also be an important foundational tool in ongoing efforts
    to prevent the illicit proliferation of conventional weapons
    around the world, which creates instability and supports some
    of the world's most violent regimes, terrorists, and criminals.
        The U.S. national control systems and practices to regulate
    the international transfer of conventional arms already meet or
    exceed the requirements of the Treaty. No additional
    legislation or regulation is required to comply with the
    Treaty. The Treaty will be an important tool in getting other
    States to adopt control systems that are closer to our high
    standards. The Treaty is not self-executing.
        The Departments of Commerce, Defense, Justice, and Homeland
    Security join me in recommending that the Treaty be transmitted
    to the Senate at the earliest possible date for its advice and
    consent to ratification, subject to the understandings and
    declarations set forth in the enclosed Overview.
        Respectfully submitted.
                                                       John F. Kerry.
        Enclosures: As stated.

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