Code of Conduct on Arms Transfers Act of 1993

Summary: Code of Conduct on Arms Transfers Act of 1993 - Prohibits U.S. military assistance and arms transfers to a foreign government unless the President certifies to the Congress that the government:  (1) meets specified conditions regarding democracy, including that it was chosen in free and fair elections and promotes civilian control of the military, the rule of law, and respect for individual rights; (2) does not engage in human rights violations, investigates and prosecutes those responsible for human rights violations, permits access to political prisoners by international organizations, and provides access to such organizations in situations of conflict or famine; (3) is not engaged in acts of armed aggression in violation of international law; and (4) is participating in the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms by annually reporting to the Register the number and type of conventional weapons possessed by, and transferred to and from, the country during the preceding year. 
Authorizes an exemption from such prohibition for a fiscal year if: (1) the President requests an exemption from the Congress stating that it is in the national security interest to provide military assistance and arms transfers to a government; and (2) the Congress enacts a law approving such request. 
Requires the President to submit initial certifications and requests for exemptions in conjunction with the submission of the annual request for enactment of authorizations and appropriations for foreign assistance. 
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee should hold hearings on controversial certifications and all requests for exemptions.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Code of Conduct on Arms Transfers 
Act of 1993''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) Approximately 40,000,000 people, over 75 percent 
        civilians, died as a result of civil and international wars 
        fought with conventional weapons during the 45 years of the 
        cold war, demonstrating that conventional weapons can in fact 
        be weapons of mass destruction.
            (2) Conflict has actually increased in the post cold war 
        era, with 26 wars in progress during 1992.
            (3) War is both a human tragedy and an ongoing economic 
        disaster affecting the entire world, including the United 
        States and its economy, because it decimates both local 
        investment and potential export markets.
            (4) International trade in conventional weapons increases 
        the risk and impact of war in an already over-militarized 
        world, creating far more costs than benefits for the United 
        States economy through increased United States defense and 
        foreign assistance spending and reduced demand for United 
        States civilian exports.
            (5) The newly established United Nations Register of 
        Conventional Arms can be an effective first step in support of 
        limitations on the supply of conventional weapons to developing 
        countries and compliance with its reporting requirements by a 
        foreign government can be an integral tool in determining the 
        worthiness of such government for the receipt of United States 
        military assistance and arms transfers.
            (6) It is in the national security and economic interests 
        of the United States to reduce dramatically the 
        $1,000,000,000,000 that all countries spend on armed forces 
        every year, $200,000,000,000 of which is spent by developing 
        countries, an amount equivalent to 4 times the total bilateral 
        and multilateral foreign assistance such countries receive 
        every year.
            (7) According to the Congressional Research Service, the 
        United States supplies more conventional weapons to developing 
        countries than all other countries combined, averaging 
        $15,600,000,000 a year in agreements to supply such weapons to 
        developing countries since the end of the cold war, compared to 
        $7,000,000,000 a year in such agreements prior to the 
        dissolution of the Soviet Union.
            (8) In recent years the vast majority of United States arms 
        transfers to developing countries are to countries with an 
        undemocratic form of government whose citizens, according to 
        the Department of State Country Reports on Human Rights 
        Practices do not have the ability to peaceably change their 
        form of government.
            (9) Although a goal of United States foreign policy should 
        be to work with foreign governments and international 
        organizations to reduce militarization and dictatorship and 
        therefore prevent conflicts before they arise, during 3 recent 
        deployments of United States Armed Forces--to the Republic of 
        Panama, the Persian Gulf, and Somalia--such Armed Forces faced 
        conventional weapons that had been provided or financed by the 
        United States to undemocratic governments.
            (10) The proliferation of conventional arms and conflicts 
        around the globe are multilateral problems, and the fact that 
        the United States has emerged as the world's primary seller of 
        conventional weapons, combined with the world leadership role 
        of the United States, signifies that the United States is in a 
        position to seek multilateral restraints on the competition for 
        and transfers of conventional weapons.
            (11) Congress has the constitutional responsibility to 
        participate with the executive branch in decisions to provide 
        military assistance and arms transfers to a foreign government, 
        and in the formulation of a policy designed to reduce 
        dramatically the level of international militarization.
            (12) A decision to provide military assistance and arms 
        transfers to a government that is undemocratic, does not 
        adequately protect human rights, is currently engaged in acts 
        of armed aggression, or is not fully participating in the 
        United Nations Register of Conventional Arms, should require a 
        higher level of scrutiny than does a decision to provide such 
        assistance and arms transfers to a government to which these 
        conditions do not apply.

SEC. 3. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to provide clear policy guidelines and 
congressional responsibility for determining the eligibility of foreign 
governments to be considered for United States military assistance and 
arms transfers.

SEC. 4. PROHIBITION OF UNITED STATES MILITARY ASSISTANCE AND ARMS 
              TRANSFERS TO CERTAIN FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS.

    (a) Prohibition.--Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c), 
United States military assistance and arms transfers may not be 
provided to a foreign government for a fiscal year unless the President 
certifies to the Congress for that fiscal year that such government 
meets the following requirements:
            (1) Promotes democracy.--Such government--
                    (A) was chosen in free and fair elections and 
                permits free and fair elections to take place;
                    (B) promotes civilian control of the military and 
                security forces, and has civilian institutions that 
                determine national security policy and control the 
                operations and spending of the armed forces, security 
                forces, and police or other law enforcement forces;
                    (C) promotes the rule of law, equality before the 
                law, and respect for individual and minority rights, 
                including freedom to speak, publish, associate, and 
                organize;
                    (D) promotes the strengthening of the political and 
                civil infrastructure of democracy, including democratic 
                legislatures and local government structures and 
                institutions of civil society that emphasize pluralism 
                and autonomy from the central government; and
                    (E) promotes strong internal and autonomous 
                institutions and groups to monitor the conduct of 
                public officials and to combat corruption.
            (2) Respects human rights.--Such government--
                    (A) does not engage in gross violations of 
                internationally recognized human rights, including--
                            (i) extra judicial or arbitrary executions;
                            (ii) disappearances;
                            (iii) torture or severe mistreatment;
                            (iv) prolonged arbitrary imprisonment;
                            (v) systematic official discrimination on 
                        the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, 
                        or national origin; and
                            (vi) grave breaches of international laws 
                        of war or equivalent violations of the laws of 
                        war in internal conflicts;
                    (B) vigorously investigates, disciplines, and 
                prosecutes those responsible for gross violations of 
                internationally recognized human rights;
                    (C) permits access on a regular basis to political 
                prisoners by international humanitarian organizations 
                such as the International Committee of the Red Cross;
                    (D) promotes the independence of the judiciary and 
                other official bodies that oversee the protection of 
                human rights;
                    (E) does not impede the free functioning of 
                domestic and international human rights organizations; 
                and
                    (F) provides access on a regular basis to 
                humanitarian organizations in situations of conflict or 
                famine.
            (3) Not engaged in certain acts of armed aggression.--Such 
        government is not currently engaged in acts of armed aggression 
        in violation of international law.
            (4) Full participation in u.n. register of conventional 
        arms.--Such government is fully participating in the United 
        Nations Register of Conventional Arms by annually reporting to 
        such Register--
                    (A) the number and type of conventional weapons 
                that such government possessed during the preceding 
                year; and
                    (B) the number and type of conventional weapons 
                transferred to and from the country of such government 
                during the preceding year.
    (b) Requirement for Continuing Compliance.--Any certification with 
respect to a foreign government for a fiscal year under subsection (a) 
shall cease to be effective for that fiscal year if the President 
certifies to the Congress that such government has not continued to 
comply with the requirements contained in paragraphs (1) through (4) of 
such subsection.
    (c) Exemption.--The prohibition contained in subsection (a) shall 
not apply with respect to a foreign government for a fiscal year if--
            (1) the President submits a request for an exemption to the 
        Congress containing a determination that it is in the national 
        security interest of the United States to provide military 
        assistance and arms transfers to such government; and
            (2) the Congress enacts a law approving such exemption 
        request.
    (d) Notification to Congress.--The President shall submit to the 
Congress initial certifications under subsection (a) and requests for 
exemptions under subsection (c) in conjunction with the submission of 
the annual request for enactment of authorizations and appropriations 
for foreign assistance programs for a fiscal year and shall, where 
appropriate, submit additional or amended certifications and requests 
for exemptions at any time thereafter in the fiscal year.

SEC. 5. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of the Congress that the Committee on Foreign 
Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign 
Relations of the Senate should hold hearings on controversial 
certifications submitted under section 4(a) and all requests for 
exemptions submitted under section 4(c).

SEC. 6. UNITED STATES MILITARY ASSISTANCE AND ARMS TRANSFERS DEFINED.

    For purposes of this Act, the terms ``United States military 
assistance and arms transfers'' and ``military assistance and arms 
transfers'' mean--
            (1) assistance under chapter 2 of part II of the Foreign 
        Assistance Act of 1961 (relating to military assistance), 
        including the transfer of excess defense articles under 
        sections 516 through 519 of that Act;
            (2) assistance under chapter 5 of part II of the Foreign 
        Assistance Act of 1961 (relating to international military 
        education and training);
            (3) assistance under the ``Foreign Military Financing 
        Program'' under section 23 of the Arms Export Control Act; or
            (4) the transfer of defense articles, defense services, or 
        design and construction services under the Arms Export Control 
        Act, including defense articles and defense services licensed 
        or approved for export under section 38 of that Act.