I 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2254 

To amend title 18, United States Code, to establish the transfer of any 

nuclear weapon, device, material, or technology to terrorists as a crime 

against humanity. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 9, 2007 

Mr. SCHIFF (for himself, Mr. THORNBERRY, and Mr. COHEN) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and 

in addition to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 

provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To amend title 18, United States Code, to establish the 

transfer of any nuclear weapon, device, material, or technology to terrorists as a crime against humanity. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ending Nuclear Traf5 ficking Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) A single, simple nuclear weapon detonated 

2 in the heart of an American city would kill 100,000 

3 people instantly, and seriously injure tens of thou4 sands more. A significant portion of the city would 

5 probably become permanently uninhabitable, with lit6 tle chance of a successful cleanup. 

7 (2) Making such a weapon would not be dif8 ficult, by modern technological standards, given 25 

9 to 35 pounds of highly enriched uranium. 

10 (3) Since the development of the first nuclear 

11 weapons, countries around the world have recognized 

12 the unique risk that nuclear weapons pose to peace 

13 and security. 

14 (4) The first treaty limiting the use of nuclear 

15 technology was the Limited Test Ban Treaty of 

16 1963, which banned the testing of nuclear weapons 

17 in the atmosphere, in outer space, and under water. 

18 Since that time, many treaties to limit the use and 

19 proliferation of nuclear weapons have been signed. 

20 (5) Perhaps the most important of these trea21 ties is the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nu22 clear Weapons, which restricts almost all of the 188 

23 nations that are signatories from developing nuclear 

24 weapons. As part of their obligation under the Trea25 ty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, 


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1 153 countries have reached safeguards agreements 

2 with the International Atomic Energy Agency that 

3 require a comprehensive system for accounting for 

4 nuclear materials and intrusive inspections of their 

5 nuclear facilities. 

6 (6) These treaties and safeguards agreements 

7 reflect the worldwide understanding that nuclear 

8 materials in the wrong hands pose a direct threat to 

9 peace and prosperity. 

10 (7) Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, 

11 Article 39 states the following: ‘‘The Security Coun12 cil shall determine the existence of any threat to the 

13 peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression and 

14 shall make recommendations, or decide what meas15 ures shall be taken in accordance with Articles 41 

16 and 42, to maintain or restore international peace 

17 and security.’’ 

18 (8) In 2004, the United Nations Security Coun19 cil unanimously adopted Resolution 1540, binding on 

20 all members of the United Nations, which stated in 

21 part the following: 

22 ‘‘The Security Council, . . . Acting under Chapter 

23 VII of the Charter of the United Nations, . . . 

24 ‘‘2. Decides also that all States, in accord25 ance with their national procedures, shall adopt 


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1 and enforce appropriate effective laws which 

2 prohibit any non-State actor to manufacture, 

3 acquire, possess, develop, transport, transfer or 

4 use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons and 

5 their means of delivery, in particular for ter6 rorist purposes, as well as attempts to engage 

7 in any of the foregoing activities, participate in 

8 them as an accomplice, assist or finance them; 

9 ‘‘3. Decides also that all States shall take 

10 and enforce effective measures to establish do11 mestic controls to prevent the proliferation of 

12 nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons and 

13 their means of delivery, including by estab14 lishing appropriate controls over related mate15 rials and to this end shall: . . . 

16 ‘‘(d) Establish, develop, review and 

17 maintain appropriate effective national ex18 port and trans-shipment controls over such 

19 items, including appropriate laws and reg20 ulations to control export, transit, trans21 shipment and re-export and controls on 

22 providing funds and services related to 

23 such export and trans-shipment such as fi24 nancing, and transporting that would con25 tribute to proliferation, as well as estabVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:20 May 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2254.IH H2254

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1 lishing end-user controls; and establishing 

2 and enforcing appropriate criminal or civil 

3 penalties for violations of such export con4 trol laws and regulations;’’. 

5 (9) Resolution 1540 reflects the general under6 standing of the members of the United Nations that 

7 the illicit transfer of nuclear weapons and related 

8 materials is a ‘‘threat to the peace’’. 

9 SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY REGARDING CRIMES 

10 AGAINST HUMANITY. 

11 It is the policy of the United States that the transfer 

12 of a nuclear weapon or device or of nuclear material or 

13 technology with reason to believe that the weapon or de14 vice, or a weapon or device made using the transferred 

15 material or technology, may be used for terrorist purposes, 

16 is a crime against humanity and that individuals are liable 

17 for such acts under customary international criminal law. 

18 SEC. 4. CRIMINAL OFFENSE. 

19 (a) OFFENSE.—Chapter 113B of title 18, United 

20 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol21 lowing new section: 

22 ‘‘§ 2332i. Transfer of nuclear weapons, devices, mate23 rial, or technology 

24 ‘‘(a) UNLAWFUL CONDUCT.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for any 

2 person to knowingly transfer to any organization or 

3 person described in paragraph (2)— 

4 ‘‘(A) any weapon that is designed or in5 tended to release radiation or radioactivity at a 

6 level dangerous to human life, or that uses a 

7 nuclear reaction in order to create an explosion; 

8 ‘‘(B) any device or other object that is ca9 pable of endangering, and is designed or in10 tended to endanger, human life through the re11 lease of radiation or radioactivity; 

12 ‘‘(C) any nuclear material or nuclear by13 product material; or 

14 ‘‘(D) any sensitive nuclear technology. 

15 ‘‘(2) ORGANIZATIONS AND PERSONS DE16 SCRIBED.—The organizations and persons referred 

17 to in paragraph (1) are— 

18 ‘‘(A) any organization designated by the 

19 Secretary of State under section 219(a)(1) of 

20 the Immigration and Nationality Act as a for21 eign terrorist organization; and 

22 ‘‘(B) any other person, if the transferor 

23 knew or had reasonable grounds to believe that 

24 the weapon, device, material, or technology 

25 transferred would be used in preparation for, or 


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1 in carrying out, a Federal crime of terrorism or 

2 an act of international terrorism, whether or 

3 not such a crime or act occurs. 

4 ‘‘(3) EFFECT ON INTERNATIONAL LAW.—Noth5 ing in this section shall be construed to apply with 

6 respect to activities undertaken by the military 

7 forces of a country in the exercise of their official 

8 duties, to the extent that such activities are con9 sistent with the principles of international law. 

10 ‘‘(b) JURISDICTION.—Conduct prohibited by sub11 section (a) is within the jurisdiction of the United States 

12 if— 

13 ‘‘(1) the offense occurs in or affects interstate 

14 or foreign commerce; 

15 ‘‘(2) the offense occurs outside of the United 

16 States and is committed by a national of the United 

17 States; 

18 ‘‘(3) the offense occurs outside of the United 

19 States and the recipient of the weapon, device, mate20 rial, or technology that is the subject of the offense 

21 has at any time conspired, attempted, or threatened 

22 to commit a Federal crime of terrorism or an act of 

23 international terrorism against the United States 

24 Government, any property of the United States, a 


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1 United States national, or an instrumentality of the 

2 interstate or foreign commerce of the United States; 

3 ‘‘(4) a financial institution or other person 

4 doing business in the United States, or any other fi5 nancial institution or other person that is under the 

6 control of an entity organized under the laws of the 

7 United States, provides funds or any form of financ8 ing in furtherance of the offense; or 

9 ‘‘(5) an offender aids or abets any person over 

10 whom jurisdiction exists under this subsection in 

11 committing an offense under this section or con12 spires with any person over whom jurisdiction exists 

13 under this subsection to commit an offense under 

14 this section. 

15 ‘‘(c) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any person who violates, or 

17 attempts or conspires to violate, subsection (a) shall 

18 be fined not more than $2,000,000 and imprisoned 

19 for a term of not less than 25 years or for life. 

20 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES.—If the death 

21 of another results from the use of the weapon, de22 vice, material, or technology that is the subject of 

23 the person’s violation of subsection (a), the person 

24 shall be fined not more than $2,000,000 and pun25 ished by imprisonment for life. 


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1 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section— 

2 ‘‘(1) an institution or person is under the ‘con3 trol’ of another entity if that other entity owns a 

4 majority of the equity interest in that institution or 

5 person; 

6 ‘‘(2) the term ‘Federal crime of terrorism’ has 

7 the meaning given that term in section 2332b(g)(5); 

8 ‘‘(3) the term ‘international terrorism’ has the 

9 meaning given that term in section 2331(1); 

10 ‘‘(4) the terms ‘nuclear material’ and ‘nuclear 

11 byproduct material’ have the meanings given those 

12 terms in section 831(f) of this title; and 

13 ‘‘(5)(A) the term ‘sensitive nuclear technology’ 

14 means any information (including information incor15 porated in a production facility or utilization facility 

16 or important component part thereof) which is not 

17 available to the public and which is important to the 

18 design, construction, fabrication, operation or main19 tenance of a uranium enrichment or nuclear fuel re20 processing facility or a facility for the production of 

21 heavy water; and 

22 ‘‘(B) the terms ‘production facility’ and ‘utiliza23 tion facility’ have the meanings given those terms in 

24 section 11 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42 

25 U.S.C. 2014).’’. 


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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of sec2 tions for chapter 113B of title 18, United States Code, 

3 is amended by adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘2332i. Transfer of nuclear weapons, devices, material, or technology.’’. 

4 SEC. 5. INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS AND BILATERAL 

5 AND MULTILATERAL FORA. 

6 (a) UNITED NATIONS.—The Secretary of State shall 

7 direct the Permanent Representative of the United States 

8 to the United Nations to seek the adoption in the General 

9 Assembly of a resolution recognizing that the transfer of 

10 a nuclear weapon or device, material, or technology, with 

11 reason to believe that the weapon or device, or a weapon 

12 or device made using the transferred material or tech13 nology, may be used for terrorist purposes, is a crime 

14 against humanity. 

15 (b) BILATERAL AND MULTILATERAL FORA.—The 

16 Secretary of State shall direct the representatives of the 

17 United States to bilateral and multilateral fora to urge 

18 their foreign counterparts to seek the enactment in their 

19 home countries of national laws recognizing that the 

20 transfer of a nuclear weapon or device, material, or tech21 nology, with reason to believe that the weapon or device, 

22 or a weapon or device made using the transferred material 

23 or technology, may be used for terrorist purposes, is a 

24 crime against humanity. 

Æ 


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