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On March 5, the Democratic Party in the Senate introduced a resolution (S.RES.77) expressing "the sense of the Senate that one of the most grave threats facing the United States is the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction," underscoring "the need for a comprehensive strategy for dealing with this threat," and setting forth the "basic principles that should underpin this strategy". The text, which was referred to the Foreign Relations Committee, was introduced on behalf of the entire Democratic caucus in the Senate by Minority Leader Thomas Daschle.
The need for such a resolution was spelled out in a joint press release (March 5) from Daschle and two senior colleagues. According to Daschle: "While President Bush says he recognizes the gravity of the threat posed by the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, his Administration has failed to act with the urgency this problem requires. In fact, during President Bush's time in office, the risks of proliferation have grown, in part as a result of actions pursued by his Administration." Joseph Biden, the senior Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee, observed: "As the CIA Director declared last month, we have entered a new world of proliferation. The nexus between the spread of weapons of mass destruction, rogue states, and terrorist groups represents the gravest threat to our nation's security. But while the Administration has rightfully focused on Iraq, North Korea is poised to enter serial production of plutonium. Indeed, too much of our non-proliferation policy today is ad hoc, inconsistent, and dismissive of the advice and role of our allies and partners." Perhaps the strongest criticism of the White House came from Joseph Lieberman: "The fact is, the events of September 11, 2001 should be a rallying cry for non-proliferation - we can imagine all too well the results if those who masterminded the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon had access to weapons of mass destruction. Yet, since then the Bush Administration has unwisely led our nation and the international community down a meandering path of policy choices with only one clear outcome: the increase of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction."
The resolution - introduced, the joint press release notes, "in the context of the Senate debate of the ratification of the Moscow Treaty" - sets out the following key elements of "a comprehensive and robust non-proliferation strategy":
"1. the establishment of a broad international coalition against proliferation;
2. the prevention of the theft or diversion of chemical weapons from existing stockpiles -
a) by greatly accelerating efforts to destroy such weapons under the terms of the Chemical Weapons Convention in the United States, Russia, and other nations; and
b) by strengthening and enforcing existing treaties and agreements on the elimination or limitation of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons;
3. the termination of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and the systems to deliver such weapons, by the reinforcement of the international system of export controls and by the immediate commencement of negotiations on a protocol to interdict shipments of such weapons and delivery systems;
4. an engagement in direct and immediate talks with North Korea, coordinated with United States regional allies, to secure the peaceful end to the nuclear programs and long-range missile programs of North Korea;
5. the elimination of excess nuclear weapons in Russia, and the security of nuclear materials in Russia and the states of the former Soviet Union, by the end of the decade in order to prevent the theft or sale of such weapons or materials to terrorist groups or hostile states, including for that purpose-
a) the provision of levels of funding for the non-proliferation programs of the Department of Energy as called for in the report of former Majority Leader of the Senate Howard Baker and former White House Counsel Lloyd Cutler; and
b) the provision of increased funding for the Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) program of the Department of Defense;
6. the expansion of the Cooperative Threat Reduction program to include additional states willing to engage in bilateral efforts to reduce their nuclear stockpiles;
7. the provision of adequate funds for homeland security, including the provision of funds to State, local, and tribal governments to hire, equip, and train the first responders required by such governments; and
8. the enhancement of the capability of the United States and other nations to detect nuclear weapons activity by the pursuit of transparency measures."
Reports: Senate democrats cite Bush administration's credibility gap on proliferation, offer comprehensive strategy for addressing this threat, Press Release from the Office of Senator Thomas Daschle, March 5, http://daschle.senate.gov; Expressing the sense of the Senate that one of the most grave threats facing the United States is the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, to underscore the need for a comprehensive strategy for dealing with this threat, and to set forth basic principles that should underpin this strategy, S.RES.77, introduced March 5.
© 2002 The Acronym Institute.