[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 185 (Friday, December 18, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1839-E1840]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       SUPPORT FUNDING FOR THE INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY

                                  _____
                                 

                            HON. BILL FOSTER

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, December 18, 2015

  Mr. FOSTER. Mr. Speaker, on December 7, 2015, I, along with 60 of my 
colleagues, sent a letter to the House Appropriations Committee urging 
robust funding for the accounts that support the International Atomic 
Energy Agency (IAEA), an international organization tasked with 
verifying that states comply with their commitments under the Non-
Proliferation Treaty and other non-proliferation agreements.
  Whether or not Members of Congress supported the Joint Comprehensive 
Plan of Action, we have a foremost responsibility to the continued 
security of the United States and our allies. Funding the organization 
that is tasked with monitoring and verifying Iran's nuclear activities 
is essential to that security. As such, I submit the following letter 
from the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation.

                                                December 17, 2015.
Withholding Funding from the IAEA is Ill-Advised and Dangerous.

       Dear Members of Congress: As individuals who have dedicated 
     our professional lives to national security and nuclear 
     nonproliferation, we strongly urge that the International 
     Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) receive full funding to monitor 
     Iran's compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of 
     Action.
       The United States, its international negotiating partners, 
     and Iran continue to move towards full implementation of the 
     Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which will restrict and 
     monitor Iran's nuclear activity in exchange for relief from 
     economic sanctions related to its nuclear program. The 
     nuclear watchdog organization, the IAEA, is responsible for 
     verifying that Iran is in compliance with the agreement 
     through an unprecedented system of intrusive inspections and 
     safeguards.
       IAEA monitoring is essential for deterring and detecting 
     illicit nuclear behavior by Iran; without adequate funding, 
     the international community cannot responsibly verify that 
     Iran's nuclear program remains peaceful and in-line with its 
     commitments. According to Director General Yukiya Amano, the 
     IAEA requires an additional $10.6 million per year to 
     undertake this task. This additional funding will pay for new 
     inspectors, the installation and maintenance of safeguard and 
     verification technology, and other monitoring activities that 
     exceed the surveillance normally conducted by the IAEA.

[[Page E1840]]

       Unfortunately, some key members of Congress advocate 
     blocking any U.S. contribution to these additional funds. On 
     December 3, Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-MT) introduced House 
     Resolution 553, supported by several House committee chairs, 
     urging that additional funding be blocked unless the IAEA 
     releases confidential documents between it and Iran.
       Release of these documents would violate the 
     confidentiality of the IAEA, which has been universally 
     regarded as necessary to ensure the cooperation of countries 
     with inspection and verification agreements. Though the 
     resolution is not legally binding, it sets a dangerous 
     precedent for future legislation.
       It is difficult to understand why Members of Congress would 
     block verification of Iran's nuclear activities. Such a self-
     defeating move would only increase the potential for Iran to 
     hide violations of the agreement by reducing the likelihood 
     of detection.
       We strongly urge Congress to ensure that the IAEA receives 
     full funding to effectively monitor Iran's implementation of 
     and compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. 
     Doing so will make the United States, its allies, and the 
     world safer.
           Sincerely,
         Hans Blix, Director General Emeritus, IAEA; Maj. General 
           Roger R. Blunt, USA (Ret.); Amb. Kenneth C. Brill 
           (ret), Former ambassador to the IAEA, Founding Director 
           of the U.S. National Counterproliferation Center; 
           Matthew Bunn, Professor, Managing the Atom Project, 
           Belfer Center, Harvard University; Brig. Gen. Stephen 
           A. Cheney, USMC (Ret.); Charles D. Ferguson, Ph.D., 
           President, Federation of American Scientists, Former 
           Naval Nuclear Officer; Trevor Findlay, Associate, 
           Managing the Atom Project, Belfer Center, Harvard 
           University; Brig. Gen. Evelyn ``Pat'' Foote, USA 
           (Ret.); Lt. Gen. Robert Gard, USA (Ret.), Chairman 
           Emeritus, Center for Arms Control & Non-Proliferation; 
           Richard L. Garwin, Contributor to design and test of 
           nuclear weapons, IBM Fellow Emeritus; Amb. Thomas 
           Graham Jr. (ret.), Chairman, Lightbridge Corp.; Lt. 
           Gen. Arlen D. Jameson. USAF (Ret.); Brig. Gen. John H. 
           Johns, USA (Ret.), Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, National 
           Defense University.
         David Kay, Former IAEA Chief Weapons Inspector in Iraq 
           (after first Gulf War); Lt. Gen. Claudia J. Kennedy, 
           USA (Ret.); Daryl G. Kimball, Executive Director, Arms 
           Control Association; Maj. Gen. Frederick H. Lawson, USA 
           (Ret.); Edward P. Levine, Ph.D., Retired senior 
           professional staff member, Senate Foreign Relations 
           Committee; Jeffrey Lewis, Director of the East Asia 
           Nonproliferation Program, Center for Nonproliferation 
           Studies; Martin Mallin, Executive Director, Managing 
           the Atom Project, Belfer Center, Harvard University; 
           Laura Rockwood, Executive Director, Vienna Center for 
           Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, Former Section Head, 
           IAEA; Joan Rohlfing, President and COO, Nuclear Threat 
           Initiative; Andrew K. Semmel, Former Deputy Assistant 
           Secretary of State for Nuclear Nonproliferation and 
           Policy; Lt. Gen. James M. Thompson, USA (Ret.), Vice 
           Chair, Boise, ID Committee on Foreign Relations; Jim 
           Walsh, Ph.D., Security Studies Program, MIT; Honorable 
           Andy Weber, Former Assistant Secretary of Defense for 
           Nuclear, Chemical and Biological Defense Programs.

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