SENSE OF CONGRESS ON CHEMICAL WEAPONS NEGOTIATIONS

SEC. 1013. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON CHEMICAL WEAPONS NEGOTIATIONS (a) Findings.—Congress makes the following findings: (1) The proliferation of chemical weapons and the repeated use of chemical weapons represent a grave threat to the security and interests of the United States. (2) The most comprehensive and effective response to the threat posed by the proliferation of chemical weapons is the completion of an effectively verifiable treaty banning the production and stockpiling of all chemical weapons. (3) The successful completion of a treaty banning all chemical weapons through the negotiations at the multinational United Nations Conference on Disarmament in Geneva should be one of the highest arms control priorities of the United States. (b) Sense of Congress.—In light of the findings in subsection (a), it is the sense of Congress that— (1) the President should continue ongoing efforts to establish an agreement with the Soviet Union and other countries establishing a mutual and effectively verifiable agreement to stop the production, proliferation, and stockpiling of all lethal chemical weapons; and (2) the United States negotiators in Geneva should take concrete steps to initiate proposals regarding the composition of the verification regime for such an agreement that will meet the legitimate concerns of other parties while addressing the security concerns of the United States.