[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 25 (Wednesday, February 8, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H1434-H1436]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


  NOTICE OF CONTINUATION OF NATIONAL EMERGENCY WITH RESPECT TO IRAQ--
  MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES (H. DOC NO. 104-29)

  The SPEAKER pro tempore laid before the House the following message 
from the President of the United States; which was read and, together 
with the accompanying papers, without objection, referred to the 
Committee on International Relations:

To the Congress of the United States:
  I hereby report to the Congress on the developments since my last 
report of August 2, 1994, concerning the national emergency with 
respect to Iraq that was declared in Executive Order No. 12722 of 
August 2, 1990. This report is submitted pursuant to section 401(c) of 
the National Emergencies Act, 50 U.S.C. 1641(c), and section 204(c) of 
the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, 50 U.S.C. 1703(c).
  Executive Order No. 12722 ordered the immediate blocking of all 
property and interests in property of the Government of Iraq (including 
the Central Bank of Iraq), then or thereafter located in the United 
States or within the possession or control of a United States person. 
That order also prohibited the importation into the United States of 
goods and services of Iraqi origin, as well as the exportation of 
goods, services, and technology from the United States to Iraq. The 
order prohibited travel-related transactions to or from Iraq and the 
performance of any contract in support of any industrial, commercial, 
or governmental project in Iraq. United States persons were also 
prohibited from granting or extending credit or loans to the Government 
of Iraq.
  The foregoing prohibitions (as well as the blocking of Government of 
Iraq property) were continued and augmented on August 9, 1990, by 
Executive Order No. 12724, which was issued in order to align the 
sanctions imposed by the United States with United Nations Security 
Council Resolution 661 of August 6, 1990.
  Executive Order No. 12817 was issued on October 21, 1992, to 
implement in the United States measures adopted in United Nations 
Security Council Resolution 778 of October 2, 1992. Resolution No. 778 
requires U.N. Member States temporarily to transfer to a U.N. escrow 
account up to $200 million apiece in Iraqi oil sale proceeds paid by 
purchasers after the imposition
 of U.N. sanctions in Iraq, to finance Iraqi's obligations for U.N. 
activities with respect to Iraq, such as expenses to verify Iraqi 
weapons destruction, and to provide humanitarian assistance in Iraq on 
a nonpartisan basis. A portion of the escrowed funds will also fund the 
activities of the U.N. Compensation Commission in Geneva, which will 
handle claims from victims of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Member 
States also may make voluntary contributions to the account. The funds 
placed in the escrow account are to be returned, with interest, to the 
Member States that transferred them to the United Nations, as funds are 
received from future sales of Iraqi oil authorized by the U.N. Security 
Council. No Member State is required to fund more than half of the 
total transfers or contributions to the escrow account.

  This report discusses only matters concerning the national emergency 
with respect to Iraq that was declared in Executive Order No. 12722 and 
matters relating to Executive Orders Nos. 12724 and 12817 (the 
``Executive orders''). The report covers events from August 2, 1994, 
through February 1, 1995.
  1. There has been one action affecting the Iraqi Sanctions 
Regulations, 31 C.F.R. Part 575 (the ``Regulations''), administered by 
the Office of Foreign Assets Control (FAC) of the Department of the 
Treasury, since my last report on August 2, 1994. On February 1, 1995 
(60 Fed. Reg. 6376), FAC amended the Regulations by adding to the list 
of Specially Designated Nationals (SDNs) of Iraq set forth in 
Appendices A (``entities and individuals'') and B (``merchant 
vessels''), the names of 24 cabinet ministers and 6 other senior 
officials of the Iraqi government, as well as 4 Iraqi state-owned 
banks, not previously identified as SDNs. Also added to the Appendices 
were the names of 15 entities, 11 individuals, and 1 vessel that were 
newly identified as Iraqi SDNs in the comprehensive list of SDNs for 
all sanctions programs administered by FAC that was published in the 
Federal Register (59 Fed. Reg. 59460) on November 17, 1994. In the same 
document, FAC also provided additional addresses and aliases for 6 
previously identified Iraqi SDNs. This Federal Register publication 
brings the total number of listed Iraqi SDNs to 66 entities, 82 
individuals, and 161 vessels.
  Pursuant to section 575.306 of the Regulations, FAC has determined 
that these entities and individuals designated as SDNs are owned or 
controlled by, or are acting or purporting to act directly or 
indirectly on behalf of, the Government of Iraq, or are agencies, 
instrumentalities or entities of that government. By virtue of this 
determination, all property and interests in property of these entities 
or persons that are in the United States or in the possession or 
control of United States persons are blocked. Further, United States 
persons are prohibited from engaging in transactions with these 
individuals or entities unless the transactions are licensed by FAC. 
The designations were made in consultation with the Department of 
State. A copy of the amendment is attached to this report.
  [[Page H1435]] 2. Investigations of possible violations of the Iraqi 
sanctions continue to be pursued and appropriate enforcement actions 
taken. The FAC continues its involvement in lawsuits, seeking to 
prevent the unauthorized transfer of blocked Iraqi assets. There are 
currently 38 enforcement actions pending, including nine cases referred 
by FAC to the U.S. Customs Service for joint investigation. Additional 
FAC civil penalty notices were prepared during the reporting period for 
violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and the 
Regulations
 with respect to transactions involving Iraq. Four penalties totaling 
$26,043 were collected from two banks, one company, and one individual 
for violations of the prohibitions against transactions involving Iraq.

  3. Investigation also continues into the roles played by various 
individuals and firms outside Iraq in the Iraqi government procurement 
network. These investigations may lead to additions to FAC's listing of 
individuals and organizations determined to be SDNs of the Government 
of Iraq.
  4. Pursuant to Executive Order No. 12817 implementing United Nations 
Security Council Resolution No. 778, on October 26, 1992, FAC directed 
the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to establish a blocked account for 
receipt of certain post August 6, 1990, Iraqi oil sales proceeds, and 
to hold, invest, and transfer these funds as required by the order. On 
October 5, 1994, following payments by the Governments of Canada 
($677,756.99), the United Kingdom ($1,740,152.44), and the European 
Community ($697,055.93), respectively, to the special United Nations-
controlled account, entitled ``United Nations Security Council 
Resolution 778 Escrow Account,'' the Federal Reserve Bank of New York 
was directed to transfer a corresponding amount of $3,114,965.36 from 
the blocked account it holds to the United Nations-controlled account. 
Similarly, on December 16, 1994, following the payment of $721,217.97 
by the Government of the Netherlands, $3,000,891.06 by the European 
Community, $4,936,808.84 by the Government of the United Kingdom, 
$190,476.19 by the Government of France, and $5,565,913.29 by the 
Government of Sweden, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York was directed 
to transfer a corresponding amount of $14,415,307.35 to the United 
Nations-controlled account. Again, on December 28, 1994, following the 
payment of $853,372.95 by the Government of Denmark, $1,049,719.82 by 
the European Community, $70,716.52 by the Government of France, 
$625,390.86 by the Government of Germany, $1,151,742.01 by the 
Government of the Netherlands, and $1,062,500.00 by the Government of 
the United Kingdom, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York was directed 
to transfer a corresponding amount of $4,813,442.16 to the United 
Nations-controlled account. Finally, on January 13, 1995, following the 
payment of $796,167.00 by the Government of the Netherlands, 
$810,949.24 by the Government of Denmark, $613,030.61 by the Government 
of Finland, and $2,049,600.12 by the European Community, the Federal 
Reserve Bank of New York was directed to transfer a corresponding 
amount of $4,269,746.97 to the United Nations-controlled account. 
Cumulative transfers from the blocked Federal Reserve Bank of New York 
account since issuance of Executive Order No. 12817 have amounted to 
$157,542,187.88 of the up to $200 million that the United States is 
obligated to match from blocked Iraqi oil payments, pursuant to United 
Nations Security Council Resolution 778.
  5. The Office of Foreign Assets Control has issued a total of 533 
specific licenses regarding transactions pertaining to Iraq or Iraqi 
assets since August 1990. Since my last report, 37 specific licenses 
have been issued. Licenses were issued for transactions such as the 
filing of legal actions against Iraqi governmental entities, legal 
representation of Iraq, and the exportation to Iraq of donated 
medicine, medical supplies, food intended for humanitarian relief 
purposes, the execution of powers of attorney relating to the 
administration of personal assets and decedents' estates in Iraq, and 
the protection of preexistent intellectual property rights in Iraq.
  6. The expenses incurred by the Federal Government in the 6-month 
period from August 2, 1994, through February 1, 1995,
 lthat are directly attributable to the exercise of powers and 
authorities conferred by the declaration of a national emergency with 
respect to Iraq are reported to be about $2.25 million, most of which 
represents wage and salary costs for Federal personnel. Personnel costs 
were largely centered in the Department of the Treasury (particularly 
in the Office of Foreign Assets Control, the U.S. Customs Service, the 
Office of the Under Secretary for Enforcement, and the Office of the 
General Counsel), the Department of State (particularly the Bureau of 
Economic and Business Affairs, the Bureau of Near East Affairs, the 
Bureau of Organization Affairs, and the Office of the Legal Adviser), 
and the Department of Transportation (particularly the U.S. Coast 
Guard).

  7. The United States imposed economic sanctions on Iraq in response 
to Iraq's illegal invasion and occupation of Kuwait, a clear act of 
brutal aggression. The United States, together with the international 
community, is maintaining economic sanctions against Iraq because the 
Iraqi regime has failed to comply fully with United Nations Security 
Council resolutions. Security Council resolutions on Iraq call for the 
elimination of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, the inviolability of 
the Iraq-Kuwait boundary, the release of Kuwaiti and other third-
country nationals, compensation for victims of Iraqi aggression, long-
term monitoring of weapons of mass destruction capabilities, the return 
of Kuwaiti assets stolen during Iraq's illegal occupation of Kuwait, 
renunciation of terrorism, an end to internal Iraqi repression of its 
own civilian population, and the facilitation of access of 
international relief organizations to all those in need in all parts of 
Iraq. More than 4 years after the invasion, a pattern of defiance 
persists: a refusal to account for missing Kuwaiti detainees; failure 
to return Kuwaiti property worth millions of dollars, including weapons 
used by Iraq in its movement of troops to the Kuwaiti border in October 
1994; sponsorship of assassinations in Lebanon and in northern Iraq; 
incomplete declarations to weapons inspectors; and ongoing widespread 
human rights violations. As a result, the U.N. sanctions remain in 
place; the United States will continue to enforce those sanctions under 
domestic authority.
  The Baghdad government continues to violate basic human rights of its 
own citizens through systematic repression of minorities and denial of 
humanitarian assistance. The Government of Iraq has repeatedly said it 
will not be bound by United Nations Security Council Resolution 688. 
For more than 3 years. Baghdad has maintained a blockade of food, 
medicine, and other humanitarian supplies against northern Iraq. The 
Iraqi military routinely harasses residents of the north, and has 
attempted to ``Abrabize'' the Kurdish, Turcomen, and Assyrian areas in 
the north. Iraq has not relented in its artillery attacks against 
civilian population centers in the south, or in its burning and 
draining operations in the southern marshes, which have forced 
thousands to flee to neighboring States.
  In 1991, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolutions 706 
and 712, which would permit Iraq to sell up to $1.6 billion of oil 
under U.N. auspices to fund the provision of food, medicine, and other 
humanitarian supplies to the people of Iraq. The resolutions also 
provide for the payment of compensation to victims of Iraqi aggression 
and other U.N. activities with respect to Iraq. The equitable 
distribution within Iraq of this humanitarian assistance would be 
supervised and monitored by the United Nations. The Iraqi regime so far 
has refused to accept these resolutions and has thereby chosen to 
perpetuate the suffering of its civilian population. More than a year 
ago, the Iraqi government informed the United Nations that it would not 
implement Resolutions 706 and 712.
  The policies and actions to the Saddam Hussein regime continue to 
pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and 
foreign policy of the United States, as well as to regional peace and 
security. The U.N. resolutions require that the Security Council be 
assured of Iraq's peaceful intentions in judging its compliance with 
sanctions. Because of Iraq's failure to comply fully with these 
resolutions, the United States will continue to apply economic 
sanctions to deter it 
[[Page H1436]] from threatening peace and stability in the region.
                                                  William J. Clinton.  
  The White House, February 8, 1995.
  

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