[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 12 (Thursday, February 10, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S637-S638]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




SENATE RESOLUTION 257--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING THE 
  RESPONSIBILITY OF THE UNITED STATES TO ENSURE THAT THE PANAMA CANAL 
         WILL REMAIN OPEN AND SECURE TO VESSELS OF ALL NATIONS

  Mr. CRAIG (for himself, Mr. Inhofe, Mrs. Hutchison, and Mr. Crapo) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 257

       Whereas the 1977 Treaty Concerning the Permanent Neutrality 
     and Operation of the Panama Canal provides that Panama and 
     the United States have the joint responsibility to ensure 
     that the Panama Canal will remain open and secure, and 
     provides that each signatory, in accordance with its 
     constitutional processes, shall defend the Canal against any 
     threat to its neutrality and shall have the right to act 
     against threats against the peaceful transit of vessels 
     through the Canal;
       Whereas the United States Armed Forces have depended upon 
     the Panama Canal for rapid transit in times of global 
     conflict, including during World War II, the Korean War, the 
     Vietnam War, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Persian Gulf 
     War;
       Whereas the common interests of Panama and the United 
     States have produced close relations between the two nations 
     and a shared interest in protecting the Canal and its 
     operations;
       Whereas the passage of Panama Law Number 5 and the port 
     facilities lease agreements have created concern about the 
     future security of the Canal and its continued unfettered 
     operations;
       Whereas Panama does not have an army, navy, or air force, 
     and the national police capabilities are inadequate to defend 
     the Canal against terrorism from internal or external 
     sources;
       Whereas occupation, damage, or destruction of this crucial 
     naval choke point would be catastrophic to the United States, 
     its allies, and the world;
       Whereas the Canal has influenced world trade patterns, 
     spurred growth in developed countries, and has been a primary 
     impetus for economic expansion in developing countries;
       Whereas the Panama Canal remains a vital economic and 
     strategic asset to the United States, its allies, and the 
     world; and
       Whereas 53 percent of Canal traffic originates or ends at 
     United States port facilities: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
       (1) any attack on or against the Panama Canal by any 
     country will be considered an act of war against the United 
     States;
       (2) the President should, prior to June 1, 2001, negotiate 
     security arrangements with

[[Page S638]]

     the Government of Panama that will protect the Canal and 
     ensure that the Canal remains open, secure, and neutral, 
     consistent with the Panama Canal Treaty, the Treaty 
     Concerning the Permanent Neutrality and Operation of the 
     Panama Canal, and the resolutions of ratification thereto; 
     and
       (3) the President should consult with the leadership of 
     both Houses of Congress and with the chairmen and ranking 
     members of the appropriate congressional committees regarding 
     the implementation of this resolution.

 Mr. CRAIG. Mr. President, today I rise to propose a resolution 
expressing the sense of the Congress regarding the responsibility of 
the United States in guaranteeing the security and passage of vessels 
through the Panama Canal.
  The Panama Canal Treaty and the Treaty concerning the Permanent 
Neutrality and Operation of the Panama Canal were a battle fought and 
lost before my time in the Congress of the United States. However, we 
still have an obligation to the world, our allies, and the people of 
the United States to ensure that the Panama Canal will remain open, 
secure, and neutral in providing safe passage to vessels of all 
nations.
  These treaties with Panama gave the United States the option of 
continuing our presence in Panama beyond 2000. This option must be 
exercised! The United States needs to retain a presence in Panama to 
ensure a measure of power projection capability in an area of vital 
national interest to our economy, our freedoms, and our way of life.
  Mr. President, this extension of our presence in Panama is also 
consistent with the intent of Congress. The 1979 Panama Canal Act, 
which incorporated the treaty into United States law, included a sense 
of the Congress resolution that the ``best interests of the United 
States require that the President enter into negotiations with the 
Republic of Panama for the purpose of arranging for the stationing of 
United States military forces after the termination of the Panama Canal 
Treaty of 1977.''
  Panama agreed to these terms in 1979. Since this time, both sides 
have been working on an agreement to define our future presence, but 
progress on this effort stalled in early 1998.
  The current administration's policy in the region is a legacy of 
missed opportunities, including their failure to negotiate a continued 
United States presence in Panama. There exists a dire need for a 
stabilizing presence which the United States has brought to the region 
since World War II. Although the traditional threat of a foreign naval 
attack on the Canal has virtually disappeared, the United States still 
needs to be able to project military power in the region. The 
unprecedented upsurge in political instability and state-sponsored 
terrorism that the United States now faces makes it necessary to 
provide rapid troop and logistical transit through the Canal. The need 
to conduct surveillance or to pursue actual and potential adversaries 
also requires immediate access to the Canal. Such possibilities make it 
essential that the United States retain a measure of conventional 
military presence in the region.
  There are many other reasons for the United States to retain a 
presence in Panama: First, the United States conducts a number of 
humanitarian and civil-military programs throughout the region. These 
missions have been greatly benefitted in the past with lower 
transportation costs and greater efficiency afforded by centralized 
logistics within the region. Second, as we all know, Panama is located 
in the center of a major drug transit corridor. Anti-drug operations 
will continue to be a critical feature of United States policy in the 
region. Third, with the issue of military readiness, the Jungle 
Operations Training Center at Fort Sherman provided unequaled 
facilities for training in low-intensity warfare. Former Assistant 
Secretary of Defense Frederick C. Smith stated that this and other 
sites ``will be difficult to replicate elsewhere.'' Last, 65 to 80 
percent of the Panamanian people favor United States involvement in the 
region.
  In conclusion, Mr. President, we need to send a decisive message to 
the current administration to renew negotiations for security 
arrangements and a continued United States presence in the region. And 
the United States Government should make it clear to the world that the 
Panama Canal will remain free, open, and neutral, and any indications 
to the contrary will be considered as an act of war against the people 
of the United States.

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