News

26 September 1997

TEXT: FACT SHEET ON STANDING CONSULTATIVE COMMISSION REGULATIONS

(Issued following the signing ceremony in New York 9/26) (280)



(The following fact sheet on the Regulations of the Standing
Consultative Commission was issued by the Department of State at the
conclusion of the signing ceremony for a set of arms accords in New
York September 26, 1997.)


FACT SHEET



Regulations of the Standing Consultative Commission



Article XIII of the ABM Treaty provides for the establishment of the
Standing Consultative Commission (SCC) as a forum for the Parties to
discuss ABM Treaty-related issues and thus to promote the Treaty's
objectives, enhance implementation, and ensure the Treaty's continuing
viability and effectiveness. The Treaty also empowers the Parties to
develop and agree upon regulations for conducting SCC business, which
the United States and the USSR did in 1973. With the succession of
Belarus, Kazakhstan, the Russian Federation, and Ukraine to the rights
and obligations of the former Soviet Union under the ABM Treaty,
revised regulations were needed to govern the multilateral operation
of the Commission.


These new SCC Regulations set forth the composition and operating
procedures for the SCC. As with the original SCC regulations, at least
two sessions per year are required to be held in Geneva, Switzerland,
or at another agreed location. These new regulations set forth
procedures for convening sessions, establishing agendas, and approving
agreements in a multilateral environment. Under these regulations,
agreements are arrived at by a consensus of the Parties. There is also
a "silent consent" procedure for approving agreements in the event a
Party is unable to attend a session. The Regulations will enter into
force simultaneously with the Memorandum of Understanding on
Succession (MOUS). The Commission has the right to revise, repeal, or
replace the Regulations as it deems necessary.