Conference Report on the Freedom Support Act

House Report 102-964

October 1, 1992

NONPROLIFERATION AND DISARMAMENT ACTIVITIES IN THE INDEPENDENT STATES

The Senate bill (sec. 110(a)(3)) authorizes the President to establish programs consistent with the national security interests findings stipulated in section 110(a)(1) of the Senate bill. Specifically, these programs are aimed at: (1) the transportation, storage, safeguarding, and destruction of nuclear, chemical, and other weapons of the former Soviet Union, as described in section 212(b) of Public Law 102-228; (2) establishing verifiable safeguards against the proliferation of such weapons; (3) preventing the diversion of weapons-related scientific expertise of the former Soviet Union; (4) facilitating the conversion of military technologies and capabilities and defense industries of the former Soviet Union; and (5) establishing science and technology centers in the independent states of the former Soviet Union.

The House amendment (secs. 501 and 503(b)) authorizes the President to use certain security assistance and Department of Defense funds to promote bilateral and multilateral nonproliferation activities by supporting the dismantlement and destruction of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, their delivery systems, and conventional weapons of the former Soviet Union and other countries; and by supporting bilateral and multilateral efforts to halt the proliferation of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, their delivery systems, related technologies, and other weapons of the independent states of the former Soviet Union and other countries, including activities such as the storage, transportation, safeguarding, and destruction of such weapons and the purchase, barter, or other acquisition of such weapons or materials derived from such weapons. The House amendment also subsumes those programs included in the Senate bill which are identified as items 2 through 5 in the previous paragraph.

The conference substitute (sec. 503) is similar to the House amendment and specifies that priority in using Department of Defense funds for carrying out nonproliferation and disarmament activities in the former Soviet Union be given to sections 503(a)(1) through 503(a)(5) of the conference substitute. The committee of conference places the highest priority on the dismantlement and destruction of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, their delivery systems, related technologies and other weapons of the independent states of the former Soviet Union.

The committee of conference notes that, with respect to the authority to purchase, barter, or otherwise acquire nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, the U.S. private sector has the technical and financial resources to assume responsibilities in this area. The August announcement by the President of the agreement between the United States and Russia for the purchase of highly enriched uranium (HEU) from the Russian stockpile was a significant step towards the type of "swords into plowshares" initiative being encouraged by the committee of conference. The U.S. private sector has the capacity to reprocess quickly the HEU to low enriched uranium (LEU) which can subsequently be converted to reactor grade and marketed to commercial nuclear power plants, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1978.

NONPROLIFERATION AND DISARMAMENT FUND

The House amendment (sec. 501) establishes a worldwide nonproliferation and disarmament fund and authorizes the President to use security assistance funds to promote bilateral and multilateral nonproliferation activities on a worldwide basis:

(1) by supporting the dismantlement and destruction of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, their delivery systems, and conventional weapons of the former Soviet Union and other countries;

(2) by supporting bilateral and multilateral efforts to halt the proliferation of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, their delivery systems, related technologies, and other weapons of the independent states of the former Soviet Union and other countries, including activities such as the storage, transportation, and safeguarding of such weapons and the purchase, barter, or other acquisition of such weapons or materials derived from such weapons;

(3) facilitating the conversion of military technologies and capabilities and defense industries of the former Soviet Union; and

(4) establishing science and technology centers in the independent states of the former Soviet Union.

The Senate bill contains no comparable provision.

The conference substitute (sec. 504) is similar to the House amendment and specifies that priority in using security assistance funds for carrying out nonproliferation and disarmament activities worldwide be given to sections 504(a)(1) through 504(a)(5) of the conference substitute. The committee of conference places the highest priority on the dismantlement and destruction of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons, their delivery systems, related technologies and other weapons of the independent states of the former Soviet Union.

The committee of conference establishes this new security assistance account in recognition of the urgent need to address the nonproliferation and disarmament challenges that confront the United States in the post-Cold War era. The committee of conference recognizes that this challenge is not confined to the independent states of the former Soviet Union alone. The committee of conference firmly believes the establishment of the worldwide nonproliferation and disarmament fund to be in the best national security interests of the United States and urges the executive branch to employ use of this fund to the fullest extent in the years ahead in support of bilateral and multilateral nonproliferation and disarmament efforts. The committee of conference further encourages the executive branch to seek expansion of these authorities in the years ahead. Finally, the committee of conference fully expects the executive branch to formally establish and authorize a non-proliferation and disarmament fund in its fiscal year 1994 budget submission and Congressional Presentation Documents for Security Assistance.