[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George H. W. Bush (1992, Book I)]
[March 3, 1992]
[Pages 369-370]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Message to the Senate Transmitting the Spain-United States Second 
Supplementary Treaty on Extradition

March 3, 1992
To the Senate of the United States:
    With a view to receiving the advice and consent of the Senate to 
ratification, I transmit herewith the Second Supplementary Treaty on 
Extradition between the United States of America and the Kingdom of 
Spain, signed at Madrid on February 9, 1988. I also transmit for the 
information of the Senate the report of the Department of State with 
respect to this Supplementary Treaty.
    The Second Supplementary Treaty supplements and amends the Treaty on 
Extradition between the United States of America and Spain, signed at 
Madrid on May 29,

[[Page 370]]

1970, as amended by the Supplementary Treaty on Extradition, signed at 
Madrid on January 25, 1975 and is designed to update and standardize the 
conditions and procedures for extradition between the United States and 
Spain. Most significant, it substitutes a dual criminality clause for a 
current list of extraditable offenses so that, inter alia, certain 
additional narcotics offenses will be covered by the Treaty. The Second 
Supplementary Treaty also provides a legal basis for temporarily 
surrendering prisoners to stand trial for crimes against the laws of the 
Requesting State.
    This Supplementary Treaty further represents an important step in 
combatting terrorism by excluding from the scope of the political 
offense exception serious offenses typically committed by terrorists, 
e.g., murder; voluntary manslaughter; voluntary assault and battery 
inflicting serious bodily harm; kidnapping; abduction; hostage-taking; 
illegal detention; the illegal use of explosives, automatic weapons, and 
incendiary or destructive devices or substances; attempt or 
participation in such offenses, as well as conspiracy or illicit 
association to commit such offenses. It also excludes from the reach of 
the political offense exception a murder or other willful crime against 
the person of a Head of State or a member of the first family of a 
Contracting Party, as well as any offense for which both Contracting 
Parties have a multilateral treaty obligation to extradite the person or 
submit the case to prosecution.
    The provisions in this Supplementary Treaty follow generally the 
form and content of extradition treaties recently concluded by the 
United States. Upon entry into force, it will supplement and amend the 
existing Extradition Treaty and Supplementary Extradition Treaty between 
the United States and Spain.
    The Supplementary Treaty will make a significant contribution to 
international cooperation in law enforcement. I recommend that the 
Senate give early and favorable consideration to the Supplementary 
Treaty and give its advice and consent to ratification.

                                                             George Bush

The White House,
March 3, 1992.