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H.J.RES.114 To authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against Iraq.
The House Committee on International Relations explained its view of the purpose of the Resolution this way: “The Committee hopes that the use of military force can be avoided. It believes, however, that providing the President with the authority he needs to use force is the best way to avoid its use. A signal of our Nation's seriousness of purpose and its willingness to use force may yet persuade Iraq to meet its international obligations, and is the best way to persuade members of the Security Council and others in the international community to join us in bringing pressure on Iraq or, if required, in using armed force against it.” Amendment efforts to continue peaceful means of resolution were defeated in committee. (Amendment details below)
The Resolution preamble is the indictment against Saddam Hussein which would give Congress the justification for attacking that country. The elements of the preamble are as follows:
1. Iraq agreed with the UN in 1991, as an element of the ceasefire after Saddam Hussein attacked Kuwait, to eliminate its nuclear, biological and chemical programs and the means to deliver and develop them and to end its support for terrorism. After that international weapons inspectors discovered large stockpiles of chemical weapons and a large scale biological weapons program and an advanced nuclear weapons development program closer than expected to producing a nuclear weapon.
2. Iraq attempted to thwart the weapons inspectors in 1998 by expelling them from the country.
3. Congress passed a law in 1998 in which it said its sense about Iraq is that Saddam Hussein is continuing WMD programs that would be threatening to vital US interests and international peace and security, declared Iraq in material breach of its international obligations and urged the president to take Constitutional action to bring Iraq into compliance with those obligations. Congress also expressed its sense that it should be the policy of the US to support efforts to remove Saddam Hussein from power and promote a democratic government to replace him.
4. Currently, (2002) Iraq poses a continuing threat to the US national security and international peace because it continues to possess and develop a significant chemical and biological weapons capability, is actively seeking nuclear weapons capability and supports and harbors terrorist organizations
5. Iraq brutally represses its civilian population by refusing to release or repatriate or account for non-Iraqis detained in Iraq including an American serviceman and fails to return Kuwait property taken in 1991.
6. The current Iraqi regime has demonstrated its capability and willingness to use weapons of mass destruction and has demonstrated its willingness to attack the US, attempted to assassinated George HW Bush and fires on coalition forces enforcing UN resolutions (No-fly zones)
7. Members of al Qaeda, the organization responsible for the September 11, 2001 attacks, are know to be in Iraq. Iraq continues to aid and harbor terrorist organizations that threaten the US. Iraq’s capability and willingness to use WMD coupled with the presence of terrorists in the country threatens to provide WMD to those terrorists to launch a surprise attack on the US or its Armed Forces and that alone justifies the US to defend itself
8. Numerous UN resolutions demanding Iraq cease activities that threaten international security, repression of its civilian population and threatening its neighbors are ignored. A 1990 Congressional Resolution (Public Law 102-1) authorizes the President “to use US Armed Forces to implement the UN Security Council Resolutions (Prior to Desert Storm and the liberation of Kuwait). Congress supported all necessary means to achieve UN resolution compliance.
9. In 2002 President Bush told the UN that “the Security Council resolutions will be enforced, and the just demands of peace and security will be met, or action will be unavoidable”
10. The US is determined to prosecute the war on terror and Iraq’s ongoing support for terrorist groups and development of WMD in violation of the 1991 cease fire makes it clear that it is in the interest of US national security that UN resolutions imposed on Iraq must be enforced, including through the use of force if necessary.
11. The President has the authority under the Constitution to take action in order to deter and prevent acts of terrorism and that authority was recognized in the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (Public Law 107-40 passed shortly after 9/11/01) and it is in the national security interest of the US to restore international peace and security to the Persian Gulf region.
The Resolution gives the President the authority to “defend the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq; and enforce all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq.” The President must, no later than 48 hours after exercising that authority explain to the House and Senate leaders his determination that relying on “diplomatic of peaceful means alone will not protect the national security of the US against the continuing threat posed by Iraq or is not likely to lead to enforcement of all relevant UN Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq”. The President must show that actions are consistent with international efforts to take action against terrorism including those who planned, authorized committed or aided the September 11, 2001 attacks.
The President must report progress to Congress every 60 days on actions taken and the status of planning for what is to be required after the military actions are completed
Sponsor: Rep. J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL-14th)
Vote: Passed House 296 to 133 (RC 455) October 10, 2002. Passed Senate with a preamble 77 to 23 (RV 237) October 11, 2002 Signed by the President and became Public Law 107-243 October 16, 2002. {Votes on Amendments listed in the “AMENDMENT” section below.}
Cost to the taxpayers: “H. J. Res 114 would authorize the President to use the armed forces of the United States as he determines necessary and appropriate to defend the United States against the threat posed by Iraq and to enforce all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq.
By itself, the resolution would not authorize any funding for the use of force, nor would it affect direct spending or receipts. While the resolution is a step toward building consensus for the use of force, it also might improve the chances of a diplomatic settlement without the use of force. The resolution would leave the decision to use force to the discretion of the President. Nevertheless, if the President should use the resolution to initiate a war against Iraq, the budgetary effects would be significant.
In an analysis regarding this subject transmitted to the Honorable Kent Conrad and the Honorable John M. Spratt Jr. on September 30, 2002, CBO noted that estimates of the total cost of a military conflict with Iraq and the conflict's aftermath are highly uncertain and depend on many unknown factors including the actual force size deployed, the duration of the conflict, the strategy employed, the number of casualties, the equipment lost, and the need for reconstruction of Iraq's infrastructure. In that analysis, CBO examined two representative examples out of the many force-level options being discussed in the media and elsewhere.
Under the assumptions incorporated in those examples, CBO estimates that the incremental costs of deploying a force to the Persian Gulf would be between $9 billion and $13 billion and that prosecuting a war would cost between $6 billion and $9 billion a month--although we cannot estimate how long such a war may last. After hostilities end, the costs to return U.S. forces to their home bases would range between $5 billion and $7 billion, CBO estimates. Further, the incremental cost of an occupation following combat operations would vary from about $1 billion to $4 billion a month. The estimates of monthly costs incorporate no assumptions about the duration of the conflict or the occupation.”
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MORE INFORMATION
IRAQ'S RECORD: 1990 THROUGH 1998
ACTION AGAINST IRAQ AND THE WAR ON TERRORISM
THE RESOLUTION TEXT
One Hundred Seventh Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE SECOND SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday,
the twenty-third day of January, two thousand and two
Joint Resolution
To authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against Iraq.
Whereas in 1990 in response to Iraq's war of aggression against and illegal occupation of Kuwait, the United States forged a coalition of nations to liberate Kuwait and its people in order to defend the national security of the United States and enforce United Nations Security Council resolutions relating to Iraq;
Whereas after the liberation of Kuwait in 1991, Iraq entered into a United Nations sponsored cease-fire agreement pursuant to which Iraq unequivocally agreed, among other things, to eliminate its nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons programs and the means to deliver and develop them, and to end its support for international terrorism;
Whereas the efforts of international weapons inspectors, United States intelligence agencies, and Iraqi defectors led to the discovery that Iraq had large stockpiles of chemical weapons and a large scale biological weapons program, and that Iraq had an advanced nuclear weapons development program that was much closer to producing a nuclear weapon than intelligence reporting had previously indicated;
Whereas Iraq, in direct and flagrant violation of the cease-fire, attempted to thwart the efforts of weapons inspectors to identify and destroy Iraq's weapons of mass destruction stockpiles and development capabilities, which finally resulted in the withdrawal of inspectors from Iraq on October 31, 1998;
Whereas in Public Law 105-235 (August 14, 1998), Congress concluded that Iraq's continuing weapons of mass destruction programs threatened vital United States interests and international peace and security, declared Iraq to be in `material and unacceptable breach of its international obligations' and urged the President `to take appropriate action, in accordance with the Constitution and relevant laws of the United States, to bring Iraq into compliance with its international obligations';
Whereas Iraq both poses a continuing threat to the national security of the United States and international peace and security in the Persian Gulf region and remains in material and unacceptable breach of its international obligations by, among other things, continuing to possess and develop a significant chemical and biological weapons capability, actively seeking a nuclear weapons capability, and supporting and harboring terrorist organizations;
Whereas Iraq persists in violating resolution of the United Nations Security Council by continuing to engage in brutal repression of its civilian population thereby threatening international peace and security in the region, by refusing to release, repatriate, or account for non-Iraqi citizens wrongfully detained by Iraq, including an American serviceman, and by failing to return property wrongfully seized by Iraq from Kuwait;
Whereas the current Iraqi regime has demonstrated its capability and willingness to use weapons of mass destruction against other nations and its own people;
Whereas the current Iraqi regime has demonstrated its continuing hostility toward, and willingness to attack, the United States, including by attempting in 1993 to assassinate former President Bush and by firing on many thousands of occasions on United States and Coalition Armed Forces engaged in enforcing the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council;
Whereas members of al Qaida, an organization bearing responsibility for attacks on the United States, its citizens, and interests, including the attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, are known to be in Iraq;
Whereas Iraq continues to aid and harbor other international terrorist organizations, including organizations that threaten the lives and safety of United States citizens;
Whereas the attacks on the United States of September 11, 2001, underscored the gravity of the threat posed by the acquisition of weapons of mass destruction by international terrorist organizations;
Whereas Iraq's demonstrated capability and willingness to use weapons of mass destruction, the risk that the current Iraqi regime will either employ those weapons to launch a surprise attack against the United States or its Armed Forces or provide them to international terrorists who would do so, and the extreme magnitude of harm that would result to the United States and its citizens from such an attack, combine to justify action by the United States to defend itself;
Whereas United Nations Security Council Resolution 678 (1990) authorizes the use of all necessary means to enforce United Nations Security Council Resolution 660 (1990) and subsequent relevant resolutions and to compel Iraq to cease certain activities that threaten international peace and security, including the development of weapons of mass destruction and refusal or obstruction of United Nations weapons inspections in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 687 (1991), repression of its civilian population in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 688 (1991), and threatening its neighbors or United Nations operations in Iraq in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 949 (1994);
Whereas in the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution (Public Law 102-1), Congress has authorized the President `to use United States Armed Forces pursuant to United Nations Security Council Resolution 678 (1990) in order to achieve implementation of Security Council Resolution 660, 661, 662, 664, 665, 666, 667, 669, 670, 674, and 677';
Whereas in December 1991, Congress expressed its sense that it `supports the use of all necessary means to achieve the goals of United Nations Security Council Resolution 687 as being consistent with the Authorization of Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution (Public Law 102-1),' that Iraq's repression of its civilian population violates United Nations Security Council Resolution 688 and `constitutes a continuing threat to the peace, security, and stability of the Persian Gulf region,' and that Congress, `supports the use of all necessary means to achieve the goals of United Nations Security Council Resolution 688';
Whereas the Iraq Liberation Act of 1998 (Public Law 105-338) expressed the sense of Congress that it should be the policy of the United States to support efforts to remove from power the current Iraqi regime and promote the emergence of a democratic government to replace that regime;
Whereas on September 12, 2002, President Bush committed the United States to `work with the United Nations Security Council to meet our common challenge' posed by Iraq and to `work for the necessary resolutions,' while also making clear that `the Security Council resolutions will be enforced, and the just demands of peace and security will be met, or action will be unavoidable';
Whereas the United States is determined to prosecute the war on terrorism and Iraq's ongoing support for international terrorist groups combined with its development of weapons of mass destruction in direct violation of its obligations under the 1991 cease-fire and other United Nations Security Council resolutions make clear that it is in the national security interests of the United States and in furtherance of the war on terrorism that all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions be enforced, including through the use of force if necessary;
Whereas Congress has taken steps to pursue vigorously the war on terrorism through the provision of authorities and funding requested by the President to take the necessary actions against international terrorists and terrorist organizations, including those nations, organizations, or persons who planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored such persons or organizations;
Whereas the President and Congress are determined to continue to take all appropriate actions against international terrorists and terrorist organizations, including those nations, organizations, or persons who planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored such persons or organizations;
Whereas the President has authority under the Constitution to take action in order to deter and prevent acts of international terrorism against the United States, as Congress recognized in the joint resolution on Authorization for Use of Military Force (Public Law 107-40); and
Whereas it is in the national security interests of the United States to restore international peace and security to the Persian Gulf region: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
This joint resolution may be cited as the `Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002'.
The Congress of the United States supports the efforts by the President to--
(1) strictly enforce through the United Nations Security Council all relevant Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq and encourages him in those efforts; and
(2) obtain prompt and decisive action by the Security Council to ensure that Iraq abandons its strategy of delay, evasion and noncompliance and promptly and strictly complies with all relevant Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq.
(a) AUTHORIZATION- The President is authorized to use the Armed Forces of the United States as he determines to be necessary and appropriate in order to--
(1) defend the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq; and
(2) enforce all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq.
(b) PRESIDENTIAL DETERMINATION- In connection with the exercise of the authority granted in subsection (a) to use force the President shall, prior to such exercise or as soon thereafter as may be feasible, but no later than 48 hours after exercising such authority, make available to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate his determination that--
(1) reliance by the United States on further diplomatic or other peaceful means alone either (A) will not adequately protect the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq or (B) is not likely to lead to enforcement of all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq; and
(2) acting pursuant to this joint resolution is consistent with the United States and other countries continuing to take the necessary actions against international terrorist and terrorist organizations, including those nations, organizations, or persons who planned, authorized, committed or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001.
(c) War Powers Resolution Requirements-
(1) SPECIFIC STATUTORY AUTHORIZATION- Consistent with section 8(a)(1) of the War Powers Resolution, the Congress declares that this section is intended to constitute specific statutory authorization within the meaning of section 5(b) of the War Powers Resolution.
(2) APPLICABILITY OF OTHER REQUIREMENTS- Nothing in this joint resolution supersedes any requirement of the War Powers Resolution.
(a) REPORTS- The President shall, at least once every 60 days, submit to the Congress a report on matters relevant to this joint resolution, including actions taken pursuant to the exercise of authority granted in section 3 and the status of planning for efforts that are expected to be required after such actions are completed, including those actions described in section 7 of the Iraq Liberation Act of 1998 (Public Law 105-338).
(b) SINGLE CONSOLIDATED REPORT- To the extent that the submission of any report described in subsection (a) coincides with the submission of any other report on matters relevant to this joint resolution otherwise required to be submitted to Congress pursuant to the reporting requirements of the War Powers Resolution (Public Law 93-148), all such reports may be submitted as a single consolidated report to the Congress.
(c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION- To the extent that the information required by section 3 of the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution (Public Law 102-1) is included in the report required by this section, such report shall be considered as meeting the requirements of section 3 of such resolution.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.
AMENDMENTS
1. H.AMDT.608 to H.J.RES.114 Amendment in the nature of a substitute sought to have the United States work through the United Nations to seek to resolve the matter of ensuring that Iraq is not developing weapons of mass destruction, through mechanisms such as the resumption of weapons inspections, negotiation, enquiry, mediation, regional arrangements, and other peaceful means.
Comments by Amendment Sponsor Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA-9th) “Its goal is to give the United Nations inspections process a chance to work. It provides an option short of war with the objective of protecting the American people and the world from any threat posed by Iraqi weapons of mass destruction.
The amendment urges the United States to reengage the diplomatic process, and it stresses our government's commitment to eliminating any Iraqi weapons of mass destruction through United Nations inspections and enhanced containment.
It emphasizes the potentially dangerous and disastrous long-term consequences for the United States of codifying the President's announced doctrine of preemption.
The administration's resolution forecloses alternatives to war before we have even tried to pursue them.
We do not need to rush to war, and we should not rush to war. If what we are worried about is the defense of the United States and its people, we do not need this resolution.
If the United States truly faced an imminent attack from anywhere, the President has all of the authority in the world to ensure our defense based on the Constitution, the War Powers Act and the United Nations Charter.
Our own intelligence agencies report that there is currently little chance of chemical and biological attack from Saddam Hussein on U.S. forces or territories. But they emphasize that an attack could become much more likely if Iraq believes that it is about to be attacked. This is a frightening and dangerous potential consequence that requires sober thought and careful reflection.
President Bush's doctrine of preemption violates international law, the United Nations Charter and our own long-term security interests. It will set a precedent that could come back to haunt us.”
Sponsor: Rep Lee, Barbara [CA-9] (introduced 10/10/2002) Cosponsors
(None)
Latest Major Action: 10/10/2002 House amendment not agreed to. Status: On
agreeing to the Lee amendment (A001) Failed by the Yeas and Nays: 72 - 355 (Roll
no. 452).
2. H.AMDT.609 to H.J.RES.114 Amendment in the nature of a substitute
sought to authorize the President to use U.S. armed forces pursuant to any
resolution of the United Nations Security Council adopted after September 12,
2002 that provides for the elimination of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.
Sponsor: Rep Spratt, John M., Jr. [D-SC-5] (introduced 10/10/2002) Cosponsors
(None)
Latest Major Action: 10/10/2002 House amendment not agreed to. Status: On
agreeing to the Spratt amendment (A002) Failed by the Yeas and Nays: 155 - 270 (Roll
no. 453).
3. H.AMDT.610 to H.J.RES.114 An amendment considered as adopted
pursuant to the provisions of H. Res. 574.
Sponsor: House Rules (introduced 10/10/2002) Cosponsors
(None)
Committees: House Rules
Latest Major Action: 10/10/2002 House amendment offered
COMMITTEE REPORT CONCLUSIONS
IRAQ'S RECORD: 1990 THROUGH 1998
In 1990, in response to Iraq's war of aggression against and illegal occupation of Kuwait, the United States forged a coalition of nations to liberate Kuwait and its people in order to defend the national security of the United States and enforce United Nations Security Council resolutions relating to Iraq.
Congress, in the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution (Pub. L. 102-1), authorized the President `to use United States Armed Forces pursuant to United Nations Security Council Resolution 678 (1990) in order to achieve implementation of Security Council Resolutions 660, 661, 662, 664, 665, 666, 667, 669, 670, 674, and 677'.
After the liberation of Kuwait in 1991, Iraq entered into a United Nations-sponsored cease-fire agreement pursuant to which Iraq unequivocally agreed, among other things, to eliminate its nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons programs and the means to deliver and develop them, and to end its support for international terrorism. The Iraqi government also agreed to completely disclose its programs, past and present, relating to the production and development of weapons of mass destruction and the means to deliver them. Iraq did not comply with those agreements. In December 1991, Congress expressed its sense that it `supports the use of all necessary means to achieve the goals of United Nations Security Council Resolution 687 as being consistent with the Authorization of Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution,' that Iraq's repression of its civilian population violates United Nations Security Council Resolution 688 and `constitutes a continuing threat to the peace, security, and stability of the Persian Gulf region,' and that Congress, `supports the use of all necessary means to achieve the goals of United Nations Security Council Resolution 688'.
The efforts of international weapons inspectors, United States intelligence agencies, and Iraqi defectors led to the discovery that Iraq had large stockpiles of chemical weapons and a large scale biological weapons program, and that Iraq had an advanced nuclear weapons development program that was much closer to producing a nuclear weapon than intelligence reporting had previously indicated. For example, after the defection of two of Saddam's sons-in-law, UNSCOM discovered significant, previously-unknown, weapons development programs. The two men were persuaded to return to Iraq, after which they were summarily killed.
Iraq, in direct and flagrant violation of the 1991 ceasefire, attempted to thwart the efforts of weapons inspectors to identify and destroy Iraq's weapons of mass destruction stockpiles and development capabilities, which finally resulted in the withdrawal of inspectors from Iraq on October 31, 1998.
In 1998 Congress concluded that Iraq's continuing weapons of mass destruction programs threatened vital United States interests and international peace and security, declared Iraq to be in `material and unacceptable breach of its international obligations' and urged the President `to take appropriate action, in accordance with the Constitution and relevant laws of the United States, to bring Iraq into compliance with its international obligations' (Pub. L. 105-235). The Iraq Liberation Act of 1998 (Pub. L. 105-338) expressed the sense of Congress that it should be the policy of the United States to support efforts to remove from power the current Iraqi regime and promote the emergence of a democratic government to replace that regime. The Act also authorized funds for the democratic opposition.
Iraq both poses a continuing threat to the national security of the United States and international peace and security in the Persian Gulf region and remains in material and unacceptable breach of its international obligations by, among other things, continuing to possess and develop a significant chemical and biological weapons capability, actively seeking a nuclear weapons capability, and supporting and harboring terrorist organizations. The continuing threat posed by Iraq is the motivation for the Committee's favorable action on H.J. Res. 114.
Iraq persists in violating resolutions of the United Nations Security Council by continuing to engage in brutal repression of its civilian population thereby threatening international peace and security in the region, by refusing to release, repatriate, or account for non-Iraqi citizens wrongfully detained by Iraq, including an American serviceman, and by failing to return property wrongfully seized by Iraq from Kuwait.
The question of the use of weapons of mass destruction is critical. The current Iraqi regime has demonstrated its capability and willingness to use weapons of mass destruction against other nations and its own people. For example, Iraq used chemical weapons against Kurdish civilians of Iraq at Halabja (March 16, 1988), and against Iran during the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980's.
The current Iraqi regime clearly sees itself as being at war with the United States, and has engaged in hostile acts toward our Nation. The current Iraqi regime has demonstrated its continuing hostility toward, and willingness to attack, the United States, including by attempting in 1993 to assassinate former President Bush during his visit to Kuwait.
Moreover, although United Nations Security Council Resolution 688 of April 5, 1991 led to the creation of `no-fly zones' over sections of Iraq, Iraq has engaged in numerous attacks on United States and Coalition aircraft enforcing it. Since 2000, Iraqi forces have fired on U.S. and British pilots 1,600 times. American and British pilots have been fired on at least 67 times since September 18th, when Saddam promised to `allow the return of the United Nations inspectors without conditions.'
Iraq also aids terrorists who have attacked the United States and its allies, including terrorists who use weapons of mass destruction. The Administration has concluded that members of al Qaida, a terrorist organization that committed the attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, and other attacks, are known to be in Iraq. Iraq also continues to aid and harbor other international terrorist organizations, including organizations that threaten the lives and safety of American citizens, such as the Mujhedin-e-Khalq (MEK), the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), the Palestinian Liberation Front (PLF), and the Abu Nidal Organization (ANO).
The attacks on the United States of September 11, 2001, underscored the gravity of the threat posed by the acquisition of weapons of mass destruction by international terrorist organizations. The current Iraqi government's demonstrated capability and willingness to use weapons of mass destruction, the risk that the current Iraqi regime will either employ those weapons to launch a surprise attack against the United States or its Armed Forces or provide them to international terrorists who would do so, and the extreme magnitude of harm that would result to the United States and its citizens from such an attack, combine to justify action by the United States to defend itself.
On September 12, 2002, President Bush committed the United States to `work with the United Nations Security Council to meet our common challenge' posed by Iraq and to `work for the necessary resolutions,' while also making clear that `the Security Council resolutions will be enforced, and the just demands of peace and security will be met, or action will be unavoidable'. The President's speech before the United Nations and a supporting report, entitled A Decade of Deception and Defiance, are reproduced under Additional Matters in this report
The use of force against Iraq may be a required part of the war on terror. The Committee expects that the President will continue to work against terror on all fronts even as we expand our efforts to deal with the Iraqi regime. The United States is determined to prosecute the war on terrorism; Iraq's ongoing support for international terrorist groups combined with its development of weapons of mass destruction in direct violation of its obligations under the 1991 cease-fire and other United Nations Security Council resolutions make clear that it is in the national security interests of the United States and in furtherance of the war on terrorism that all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions be enforced, including through the use of force if necessary.
Congress has taken steps to pursue vigorously the war on terrorism through the provision of authorities and funding requested by the President to take the necessary actions against international terrorists and terrorist organizations, including those nations, organizations or persons who planned, authorized, committed or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored such persons or organizations.
The Committee believes that the President has authority under the Constitution to take action in order to deter and prevent acts of international terrorism against the United States, as Congress recognized in the joint resolution on Authorization for Use of Military Force (Pub. L. 107-40). Some may disagree with the need to provide additional authority to deal with Iraq by means of this joint resolution. The Committee submits that while there have been attempts in the past decade to revise or repeal the War Powers Resolution this is not the time to resolve that issue. This resolution `moves the ball' in neither direction on the question of the President's War Powers, but conforms to recent precedent.
It is in the national security interest of the United States to restore international peace and security to the Persian Gulf region, which is threatened at this time primarily by the actions of the current Iraqi regime. The people of the Persian Gulf region deserve to live in peace. They should not be bullied by the likes of Saddam Hussein. Moreover, the crucial flows of energy from the Persian Gulf are not only important to the United States but to every major economy in the world--our trading partners and allies. A serious disruption of energy supplies could well plunge the world into economic chaos. Even if the United States conserved energy or somehow otherwise avoided the direct effects of energy flow disruptions, our trading partners would suffer from economic depression. We would be stuck with agricultural and manufactured goods we could not sell; tourism would dry up; few would seek the benefits of our service industries. For these reasons, safeguarding the free flow of energy supplies has been recognized as a vital national security concern of the United States for scores of years.
The Committee emphasizes that the people and Government of the United States have no quarrel with the Iraqi people but, rather, with the Iraqi regime and its policies. Neither the people and Government of the United States nor the world community will be satisfied with a cosmetic change at the top of the regime resulting in the replacement of Saddam Hussein by a similarly bloody-minded relative or general. The people and Government of the United States hope that the Iraqi people will achieve in the near future a full measure of human rights and that Iraq will take is rightful place in the world. This matter was brought to the Committee's attention during markup by Mr. Smith of Michigan.
The Committee has supported and will continue to support legislation aimed at bringing Saddam Hussein and his henchmen to justice in a specially-constituted, United Nations Security Council-sponsored, ad hoc international criminal tribunal, similar to the one sponsored to deal with the Former Republic of Yugoslavia. The Committee believes that Saddam should be held to account for his many horrific, crimes. If, however, the people of Iraq propose, through a democratic mechanism, another approach to address the acts of who aided Saddam's regime, the international community should consider their proposal seriously. This matter was helpfully brought to the Committee's attention during markup by Mr. Delahunt of Massachusetts.
The Committee emphasizes its approval of the President's decision to seek United Nations Security Council approval of a robust inspection and disarmament force prior to the use of United States Armed Forces; this matter was included in the introduced resolution. Helpful additional language on this point was proposed by Mr. Blumenauer of Oregon and received favorable discussion during the markup but the language was withdrawn as an unnecessary complication to the delicate balance that had been reached on the underlying text.
In the course of the Committee's consideration Mr. Sherman of California offered an amendment, which was defeated, to remove certain provisions from the joint resolution and recast it as being aimed solely at the removal of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. In the Committee's view, Mr. Sherman's amendment was a well-thought out, carefully crafted, and on the whole an excellent attempt to deal with the issue. However, it was the view of the Committee that the underlying joint resolution represented the best approach.
New York, New York
September 12, 2002
10:39 A.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Mr. Secretary General, Mr. President, distinguished delegates, and ladies and gentlemen: We meet one year and one day after a terrorist attack brought grief to my country, and brought grief to many citizens of our world. Yesterday, we remembered the innocent lives taken that terrible morning. Today, we turn to the urgent duty of protecting other lives, without illusion and without fear.
We've accomplished much in the last year--in Afghanistan and beyond. We have much yet to do--in Afghanistan and beyond. Many nations represented here have joined in the fight against global terror, and the people of the United States are grateful.
The United Nations was born in the hope that survived a world war--the hope of a world moving toward justice, escaping old patterns of conflict and fear. The founding members resolved that the peace of the world must never again be destroyed by the will and wickedness of any man. We created the United Nations Security Council, so that, unlike the League of Nations, our deliberations would be more than talk, our resolutions would be more than wishes. After generations of deceitful dictators and broken treaties and squandered lives, we dedicated ourselves to standards of human dignity shared by all, and to a system of security defended by all.
Today, these standards, and this security, are challenged. Our commitment to human dignity is challenged by persistent poverty and raging disease. The suffering is great, and our responsibilities are clear. The United States is joining with the world to supply aid where it reaches people and lifts up lives, to extend trade and the prosperity it brings, and to bring medical care where it is desperately needed.
As a symbol of our commitment to human dignity, the United States will return to UNESCO. (Applause.) This organization has been reformed and America will participate fully in its mission to advance human rights and tolerance and learning.
Our common security is challenged by regional conflicts--ethnic and religious strife that is ancient, but not inevitable. In the Middle East, there can be no peace for either side without freedom for both sides. America stands committed to an independent and democratic Palestine, living side by side with Israel in peace and security. Like all other people, Palestinians deserve a government that serves their interests and listens to their voices. My nation will continue to encourage all parties to step up to their responsibilities as we seek a just and comprehensive settlement to the conflict.
Above all, our principles and our security are challenged today by outlaw groups and regimes that accept no law of morality and have no limit to their violent ambitions. In the attacks on America a year ago, we saw the destructive intentions of our enemies. This threat hides within many nations, including my own. In cells and camps, terrorists are plotting further destruction, and building new bases for their war against civilization. And our greatest fear is that terrorists will find a shortcut to their mad ambitions when an outlaw regime supplies them with the technologies to kill on a massive scale.
In one place--in one regime--we find all these dangers, in their most lethal and aggressive forms, exactly the kind of aggressive threat the United Nations was born to confront.
Twelve years ago, Iraq invaded Kuwait without provocation. And the regime's forces were poised to continue their march to seize other countries and their resources. Had Saddam Hussein been appeased instead of stopped, he would have endangered the peace and stability of the world. Yet this aggression was stopped--by the might of coalition forces and the will of the United Nations.
To suspend hostilities, to spare himself, Iraq's dictator accepted a series of commitments. The terms were clear, to him and to all. And he agreed to prove he is complying with every one of those obligations.
He has proven instead only his contempt for the United Nations, and for all his pledges. By breaking every pledge--by his deceptions, and by his cruelties--Saddam Hussein has made the case against himself.
In 1991, Security Council Resolution 688 demanded that the Iraqi regime cease at once the repression of its own people, including the systematic repression of minorities--which the Council said, threatened international peace and security in the region. This demand goes ignored.
Last year, the U.N. Commission on Human Rights found that Iraq continues to commit extremely grave violations of human rights, and that the regime's repression is all pervasive. Tens of thousands of political opponents and ordinary citizens have been subjected to arbitrary arrest and imprisonment, summary execution, and torture by beating and burning, electric shock, starvation, mutilation, and rape. Wives are tortured in front of their husbands, children in the presence of their parents--and all of these horrors concealed from the world by the apparatus of a totalitarian state.
In 1991, the U.N. Security Council, through Resolutions 686 and 687, demanded that Iraq return all prisoners from Kuwait and other lands. Iraq's regime agreed. It broke its promise. Last year the Secretary General's high-level coordinator for this issue reported that Kuwait, Saudi, Indian, Syrian, Lebanese, Iranian, Egyptian, Bahraini, and Omani nationals remain unaccounted for--more than 600 people. One American pilot is among them.
In 1991, the U.N. Security Council, through Resolution 687, demanded that Iraq renounce all involvement with terrorism, and permit no terrorist organizations to operate in Iraq. Iraq's regime agreed. It broke this promise. In violation of Security Council Resolution 1373, Iraq continues to shelter and support terrorist organizations that direct violence against Iran, Israel, and Western governments. Iraqi dissidents abroad are targeted for murder. In 1993, Iraq attempted to assassinate the Emir of Kuwait and a former American President. Iraq's government openly praised the attacks of September the 11th. And al Qaeda terrorists escaped from Afghanistan and are known to be in Iraq.
In 1991, the Iraqi regime agreed to destroy and stop developing all weapons of mass destruction and long-range missiles, and to prove to the world it has done so by complying with rigorous inspections. Iraq has broken every aspect of this fundamental pledge.
From 1991 to 1995, the Iraqi regime said it had no biological weapons. After a senior official in its weapons program defected and exposed this lie, the regime admitted to producing tens of thousands of liters of anthrax and other deadly biological agents for use with Scud warheads, aerial bombs, and aircraft spray tanks. U.N. inspectors believe Iraq has produced two to four times the amount of biological agents it declared, and has failed to account for more than three metric tons of material that could be used to produce biological weapons. Right now, Iraq is expanding and improving facilities that were used for the production of biological weapons.
United Nations' inspections also revealed that Iraq likely maintains stockpiles of VX, mustard and other chemical agents, and that the regime is rebuilding and expanding facilities capable of producing chemical weapons.
And in 1995, after four years of deception, Iraq finally admitted it had a crash nuclear weapons program prior to the Gulf War. We know now, were it not for that war, the regime in Iraq would likely have possessed a nuclear weapon no later than 1993.
Today, Iraq continues to withhold important information about its nuclear program--weapons design, procurement logs, experiment data, an accounting of nuclear materials and documentation of foreign assistance. Iraq employs capable nuclear scientists and technicians. It retains physical infrastructure needed to build a nuclear weapon. Iraq has made several attempts to buy high-strength aluminum tubes used to enrich uranium for a nuclear weapon. Should Iraq acquire fissile material, it would be able to build a nuclear weapon within a year. And Iraq's state-controlled media has reported numerous meetings between Saddam Hussein and his nuclear scientists, leaving little doubt about his continued appetite for these weapons.
Iraq also possesses a force of Scud-type missiles with ranges beyond the 150 kilometers permitted by the U.N. Work at testing and production facilities shows that Iraq is building more long-range missiles that it can inflict mass death throughout the region.
In 1990, after Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, the world imposed economic sanctions on Iraq. Those sanctions were maintained after the war to compel the regime's compliance with Security Council resolutions. In time, Iraq was allowed to use oil revenues to buy food. Saddam Hussein has subverted this program, working around the sanctions to buy missile technology and military materials. He blames the suffering of Iraq's people on the United Nations, even as he uses his oil wealth to build lavish palaces for himself, and to buy arms for his country. By refusing to comply with his own agreements, he bears full guilt for the hunger and misery of innocent Iraqi citizens.
In 1991, Iraq promised U.N. inspectors immediate and unrestricted access to verify Iraq's commitment to rid itself of weapons of mass destruction and long-range missiles. Iraq broke this promise, spending seven years deceiving, evading, and harassing U.N. inspectors before ceasing cooperation entirely. Just months after the 1991 cease-fire, the Security Council twice renewed its demand that the Iraqi regime cooperate fully with inspectors, condemning Iraq's serious violations of its obligations. The Security Council again renewed that demand in 1994, and twice more in 1996, deploring Iraq's clear violations of its obligations. The Security Council renewed its demand three more times in 1997, citing flagrant violations; and three more times in 1998, calling Iraq's behavior totally unacceptable. And in 1999, the demand was renewed yet again.
As we meet today, it's been almost four years since the last U.N. inspectors set foot in Iraq, four years for the Iraqi regime to plan, and to build, and to test behind the cloak of secrecy.
We know that Saddam Hussein pursued weapons of mass murder even when inspectors were in his country. Are we to assume that he stopped when they left? The history, the logic, and the facts lead to one conclusion: Saddam Hussein's regime is a grave and gathering danger. To suggest otherwise is to hope against the evidence. To assume this regime's good faith is to bet the lives of millions and the peace of the world in a reckless gamble. And this is a risk we must not take.
Delegates to the General Assembly, we have been more than patient. We've tried sanctions. We've tried the carrot of oil for food, and the stick of coalition military strikes. But Saddam Hussein has defied all these efforts and continues to develop weapons of mass destruction. The first time we may be completely certain he has a--nuclear weapons is when, God forbids, he uses one. We owe it to all our citizens to do everything in our power to prevent that day from coming.
The conduct of the Iraqi regime is a threat to the authority of the United Nations, and a threat to peace. Iraq has answered a decade of U.N. demands with a decade of defiance. All the world now faces a test, and the United Nations a difficult and defining moment. Are Security Council resolutions to be honored and enforced, or cast aside without consequence? Will the United Nations serve the purpose of its founding, or will it be irrelevant?
The United States helped found the United Nations. We want the United Nations to be effective, and respectful, and successful. We want the resolutions of the world's most important multilateral body to be enforced. And right now those resolutions are being unilaterally subverted by the Iraqi regime. Our partnership of nations can meet the test before us, by making clear what we now expect of the Iraqi regime.
If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will immediately and unconditionally forswear, disclose, and remove or destroy all weapons of mass destruction, long-range missiles, and all related material.
If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will immediately end all support for terrorism and act to suppress it, as all states are required to do by U.N. Security Council resolutions.
If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will cease persecution of its civilian population, including Shi'a, Sunnis, Kurds, Turkomans, and others, again as required by Security Council resolutions.
If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will release or account for all Gulf War personnel whose fate is still unknown. It will return the remains of any who are deceased, return stolen property, accept liability for losses resulting from the invasion of Kuwait, and fully cooperate with international efforts to resolve these issues, as required by Security Council resolutions.
If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will immediately end all illicit trade outside the oil-for-food program. It will accept U.N. administration of funds from that program, to ensure that the money is used fairly and promptly for the benefit of the Iraqi people.
If all these steps are taken, it will signal a new openness and accountability in Iraq. And it could open the prospect of the United Nations helping to build a government that represents all Iraqis--a government based on respect for human rights, economic liberty, and internationally supervised elections.
The United States has no quarrel with the Iraqi people; they've suffered too long in silent captivity. Liberty for the Iraqi people is a great moral cause, and a great strategic goal. The people of Iraq deserve it; the security of all nations requires it. Free societies do not intimidate through cruelty and conquest, and open societies do not threaten the world with mass murder. The United States supports political and economic liberty in a unified Iraq.
We can harbor no illusions--and that's important today to remember. Saddam Hussein attacked Iran in 1980 and Kuwait in 1990. He's fired ballistic missiles at Iran and Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Israel. His regime once ordered the killing of every person between the ages of 15 and 70 in certain Kurdish villages in northern Iraq. He has gassed many Iranians, and 40 Iraqi villages.
My nation will work with the U.N. Security Council to meet our common challenge. If Iraq's regime defies us again, the world must move deliberately, decisively to hold Iraq to account. We will work with the U.N. Security Council for the necessary resolutions. But the purposes of the United States should not be doubted. The Security Council resolutions will be enforced--the just demands of peace and security will be met--or action will be unavoidable. And a regime that has lost its legitimacy will also lose its power.
Events can turn in one of two ways: If we fail to act in the face of danger, the people of Iraq will continue to live in brutal submission. The regime will have new power to bully and dominate and conquer its neighbors, condemning the Middle East to more years of bloodshed and fear. The regime will remain unstable--the region will remain unstable, with little hope of freedom, and isolated from the progress of our times. With every step the Iraqi regime takes toward gaining and deploying the most terrible weapons, our own options to confront that regime will narrow. And if an emboldened regime were to supply these weapons to terrorist allies, then the attacks of September the 11th would be a prelude to far greater horrors.
If we meet our responsibilities, if we overcome this danger, we can arrive at a very different future. The people of Iraq can shake off their captivity. They can one day join a democratic Afghanistan and a democratic Palestine, inspiring reforms throughout the Muslim world. These nations can show by their example that honest government, and respect for women, and the great Islamic tradition of learning can triumph in the Middle East and beyond. And we will show that the promise of the United Nations can be fulfilled in our time.
Neither of these outcomes is certain. Both have been set before us. We must choose between a world of fear and a world of progress. We cannot stand by and do nothing while dangers gather. We must stand up for our security, and for the permanent rights and the hopes of mankind. By heritage and by choice, the United States of America will make that stand. And, delegates to the United Nations, you have the power to make that stand, as well.
Thank you very much. (Applause.)
Section 1. Short Title.
This section provides that the joint resolution may be cited as the `Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002.'
Section 2. Support for United States Diplomatic Efforts.
This section states that Congress supports the efforts of President Bush to strictly enforce, through the United Nations Security Council, all Security Council resolutions adopted prior to the enactment of this Act addressing the threats posed by Iraq, or adopted afterward to further enforce the earlier resolutions. It also states Congressional support for the President's efforts to obtain prompt and decisive action by the Security Council to ensure that Iraq abandons its strategy of delay, evasion and noncompliance, and promptly and strictly complies with all relevant Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq. The Committee hopes that the United Nations Security Council will be able to ensure that the current Iraqi regime abides by its obligations to end its development of weapons of mass destruction, ends its development of prohibited ballistic missiles, ends its commission of and support for international terrorism, and otherwise complies with its international obligations.
Section 3. Authorization for Use of United States Armed Forces
Subsection (a) authorizes the President to use United States Armed Forces as he determines to be necessary and appropriate in order to (1) defend the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq; and (2) enforce all relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions regarding Iraq. This section makes clear that United States Armed Forces may have to be used to address the continuing threat posed by the Iraqi regime, which primarily consists of its continued possession, development and acquisition of chemical and biological weapons, and prohibited ballistic missiles, nuclear weapons, and its continued support for and harboring of international terrorists.
Subsection (b) requires that prior to the exercise of the authority under subsection (a) or as soon thereafter as may be feasible, but no later than 48 hours after exercising such authority, the President shall make available to the Speaker of the House and the President pro tempore of the Senate a two-part determination. First, the President must certify that reliance by the United States on further diplomatic or other peaceful means alone either (A) will not adequately protect the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq, or (B) is not likely to lead to enforcement of all relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions regarding Iraq. Second, the President must certify that using United States Armed Forces against Iraq is consistent with the United States and other countries continuing to take the necessary actions against international terrorists and terrorist organizations, including those nations, organizations or persons who planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored such persons or organizations. These Presidential determinations are only required, however, if the President deploys the Armed Forces for the actual use of force and not for other non-hostile situations such as peacekeeping exercises.
The Committee is concerned that military action against Iraq may affect the current war against terrorism, al Qaida and other terrorist groups and believes it is important that U.S. action against Iraq not prevent the United States and other countries from continuing the actions necessary to combat international terrorism.
Subsection (c) makes clear that this resolution is intended to constitute specific authorization within the meaning of section 5(b) of the War Powers Resolution (Public Law 93-148), and that nothing in this section supercedes any requirement of the War Powers Resolution.
Section 4. Reports to Congress.
Subsection (a) provides that at least once every 60 days, the President submit to the Congress a report on matters relevant to this joint resolution, including but not limited to actions taken pursuant to the exercise of the authority granted in section 3 and the status of planning for efforts that are expected to be required after such actions are completed, including efforts described in section 7 of the Iraq Liberation Act of 1998 (Public Law 105-338). Once we embark on military action, the Committee believes that there needs to be in place contingency plans for the actions that may need to be taken once armed hostilities have ceased. The President should consider and report on what degree of commitment of U.S. forces may be required in the aftermath of a conflict with Iraq, the degree to which other countries could share that burden, and how to support Iraq's transition to democracy, including what humanitarian assistance for the Iraqi people may be required, the provision of democracy transition assistance to Iraqi parties and movements with democratic goals, and by developing a multilateral response to Iraq's foreign debt incurred by the current Iraqi regime.
Subsections (b) and (c) provide that to the extent that the report submitted pursuant to subsection (a) coincides with the reports required by Section 3 of the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution (Public Law 102-1) or the War Powers Resolution (Public Law 93-148), and the report submitted pursuant to subsection (a) includes all the information required by the provisions of such law, a single, consolidated report may be submitted rather than the two or even three reports that may be required to be submitted within days of each other.
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