[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 12 (Monday, March 24, 2003)]
[Pages 345-346]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Message to the Congress Reporting on Confiscation and Vesting of Certain 
Iraqi Property

March 20, 2003

To the Congress of the United States:

    Pursuant to section 204(b) of the International Emergency Economic 
Powers Act, 50 U.S.C. 1703(b) (IEEPA), and section 301 of the National 
Emergencies Act, 50 U.S.C. 1631, I hereby report that I have taken 
additional steps with respect to the national emergency declared in 
Executive Order 12722 of August 2, 1990, by exercising my statutory 
authority to confiscate and vest certain property of the Government of 
Iraq and its agencies, instrumentalities, or controlled entities.
    Consistent with section 203(a)(1)(C) of IEEPA, 50 U.S.C. 
1702(a)(1)(C), as added by section 106 of the USA PATRIOT ACT, Public 
Law 107-56, I have ordered that certain blocked funds held in the United 
States in accounts in the name of the Government of Iraq, the Central 
Bank of Iraq, Rafidain Bank, Rasheed Bank, or the State Organization for 
Marketing Oil are hereby confiscated and vested in the Department of the 
Treasury. I have made exceptions for any such funds that are subject to 
the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations or the Vienna Convention 
on Consular Relations, or that enjoy equivalent privileges and 
immunities under the laws of the United States, and are or have been 
used for diplomatic or consular purposes. In addition, such amounts 
that, as of the date of the order, are subject to post-judgment writs of 
execution or attachment in aid of execution of judgments pursuant to 
section 201 of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-
297) are not being vested, provided that, upon satisfaction of the 
judgments on which such writs are based, any remainder of such excepted 
amounts shall, without further action, be confiscated and vested.
    I have delegated to the Secretary of the Treasury authority to 
undertake all other action of the President and all functions of the 
President set forth in section 203(a)(1)(C) of IEEPA with respect to any 
and all property of the Government of Iraq, including its agencies, 
instrumentalities, or controlled entities, and to take additional steps, 
including the promulgation of rules and regulations as may be necessary 
to carry out the purposes of this order.
    I am enclosing a copy of the Executive Order I have issued, which is 
effective immediately.
    I have exercised these authorities in furtherance of Executive 
Orders 12722 and 12724 with respect to the unusual and extraordinary 
threat to our national security and foreign policy posed by the policies 
and actions of the Government of Iraq. I intend that such vested 
property should be used to assist the Iraqi people and to assist in the 
reconstruction of Iraq, and have determined that such use would be in 
the interest of and for the benefit of the United States.
    The power to vest assets of a foreign government with which the 
United States is engaged in armed hostilities is one that has been 
recognized for many decades. This power is being used here because it is 
clearly in the interests of the United States to have these funds 
available for use in rebuilding Iraq and launching that country on the 
path to speedy economic recovery. In addition, this authority is being 
invoked in a limited way, designed to minimize harm to third parties and 
to respect existing court orders as much as possible.
                                                George W. Bush
 The White House,
 March 20, 2003.

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