[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 61 (Thursday, May 14, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E858-E859]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                RATIFY THE COMPREHENSIVE TEST BAN TREATY

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ELIZABETH FURSE

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 14, 1998

  Ms. FURSE. Mr. Speaker, in light of the appalling underground nuclear 
testing in India, I submit the following editorial ``What did We Tell 
You'' written by former Senator Mark O. Hatfield and former 
Representative Mike Kopetski. I would like to join my former colleagues 
in urging the Senate to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.

                         What Did We Tell You?


   India's tests of nuclear bombs prove the need for test ban treaty

             (By Mark O. Hatfield and Michael J. Kopetski)

       The U.S. Senate has an historic opportunity to help shut 
     the door on the most threatening menace to Americans: the 
     risk of a renewed nuclear weapons arms race with Russia and 
     China, and the proliferation of nuclear weapons. This 
     lingering danger was dramatically illustrated on Monday when 
     India conducted three nuclear tests at its Pokhra test site.
       These tests are certain to alarm neighboring Pakistan and 
     China, both of whom possess nuclear weapons of their own, and 
     heighten tensions in this volatile region of the world. In 
     order to reduce these risks, the Senate has the 
     responsibility to promptly consider and ratify the 
     Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.
       Forty years ago this month, President Dwight D. Eisenhower 
     recognized the value of stopping nuclear testing by 
     initiating formal discussions with the Soviets for a 
     ``discontinuance of all nuclear weapons tests.'' His effort, 
     unfortunately, fell short; but with the end of the Cold War, 
     new opportunities and even stronger reasons for the test ban 
     have emerged.
       The collapse of America's old rival created the possibility 
     of dramatically reducing the risk of a conflict involving 
     nuclear weapons--a possibility that still threatens each and 
     every American. In 1991, Presidents George Bush and Mikhail 
     Gorbachev decided to seize the opportunity to reduce the 
     nuclear danger. They signed a new strategic nuclear arms 
     reduction agreement. President Bush took our nuclear-armed 
     bombers off alert and withdrew most U.S. tactical nuclear 
     weapons. President Gorbachev instituted a temporary halt to 
     Soviet nuclear weapons testing.
       While serving the people of Oregon as members of Congress, 
     the two of us responded by introducing legislation to match 
     the Soviet nuclear test moratorium with a one-year U.S. 
     testing halt. We believed that it was--and still is--vital 
     that the United Stats, as the world's pre-eminent power, set 
     an example so that we can persuade other nations to refrain 
     from acquiring nuclear weapons, and avoid giving any nuclear 
     power reason to resume testing.
       Later, in 1992, our legislation gained broad support and 
     was strengthened to require the initiation of negotiations on 
     a global ban on nuclear weapon test explosions. In 1993, 
     President Clinton extended the U.S. moratorium on nuclear 
     testing. In 1996, negotiations on the Comprehensive Nuclear 
     Test Ban Treaty were completed. It has been signed by 149 
     nations, including all five nuclear weapon states. In 
     September 1997, the president sent the treaty to the U.S. 
     Senator for its approval.
       The questions debated in 1992 are similar to the questions 
     about the treaty in 1998: Can we verify the reliability of 
     our nuclear arsenal without testing? Can we enforce a global 
     ban on nuclear tests? What happens if America fails to act or 
     approve the test ban?
       The answer is the same as it was in 1992: A nuclear test 
     ban is clearly in America's national security interest.
       The U.S. nuclear weapons arsenal is well-tested. We have 
     conducted 2,046 nuclear tests--more than 1,000 in the 
     atmosphere. The United States possesses the most advanced, 
     accurate and deadly nuclear arsenal in the world. Since the 
     nuclear test moratorium of 1992, our nuclear weapons 
     laboratories have maintained the safety and reliability of 
     the U.S. nuclear Weapons without nuclear testing. The 
     directors of the three national nuclear weapons laboratories, 
     as well as leading independent nuclear weapon scientists, 
     have determined that the remaining arsenal can be maintained 
     through non-nuclear tests and evaluations.
       Given the overwhelming nuclear capability of the United 
     States, the Test Ban Treaty is clearly in our national 
     interest. It would make it much more difficult for other 
     countries with advanced nuclear weapons to produce new and 
     even more threatening ones. It also would help stop nuclear 
     proliferation by deterring, if not preventing, any nation 
     from developing sophisticated nuclear weapons that can be 
     delivered by ballistic missiles. With the Test Ban Treaty in 
     place, no would-be violator could be confident that a test 
     nuclear explosion could escape detection.
       Failure to act on the Test Ban Treaty this year would 
     severely undermine U.S. leadership efforts to stop the spread 
     of nuclear weapons. In 1995, the United States and other

[[Page E859]]

     nuclear nations promised to deliver on the Test Ban Treaty in 
     exchange for the indefinite extension of the Nuclear Non-
     Proliferation Treaty. It is a good deal that must be honored.
       The Test Ban Treaty enjoys broad support. If the Senate is 
     allowed to vote on the treaty this year, it would likely win 
     the 67 votes needed for ratification. Current and past U.S. 
     military leaders support the treaty, including Gen. Colin 
     Powell and three other former chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of 
     Staff. The public also strongly supports a permanent end to 
     nuclear testing. A September 1997 national opinion poll 
     revealed that 70 percent of the public wants the Senate to 
     approve the treaty; only 13 percent oppose it.
       Unfortunately, the leadership of the Senate Foreign 
     Relations Committee is preventing the full Senate from 
     considering the treaty. The committee needs to be persuaded 
     to send the Test Ban Treaty to the Senate floor.
       In the interest of a safer America and a more secure world, 
     senators who recognize the risk of nuclear proliferation and 
     the value of the test ban must provide the leadership 
     necessary to allow the Senate to debate and vote on the 
     treaty this year.
       The time for nuclear testing is over. The time to approve 
     the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty is now.

     

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