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[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 138 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 138

 Expressing the sense of the Congress with respect to Saudi Arabia and 
           the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 6, 1993

Mr. Gejdenson submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
  referred jointly to the Committees on Foreign Affairs and Ways and 
                                 Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

 
 Expressing the sense of the Congress with respect to Saudi Arabia and 
           the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).

Whereas the Arab League has maintained a secondary and tertiary boycott since 
        the early 1950's against United States and other countries that have 
        commercial ties with Israel;
Whereas the United States has a long-standing policy opposing the Arab League 
        boycott, and United States law prohibits United States firms from 
        complying with the boycott and prohibits the provision of information to 
        Arab countries to demonstrate compliance with the boycott;
Whereas President Clinton and Secretary of State Christopher have engaged in a 
        major antiboycott initiative designed to end the enforcement of the 
        secondary and tertiary aspects of the Arab League boycott;
Whereas this initiative is long overdue given that the Arab League boycott has 
        cost Israel an estimated $44,000,000,000 over the past 40 years in lost 
        investments and commercial opportunities;
Whereas Saudi Arabia is a member of the Arab League, and has enforced the 
        secondary and tertiary Arab League boycott;
Whereas Saudi Arabia requested boycott-related information from United States 
        companies nearly 1,300 times in fiscal year 1991, a level of boycott 
        requests higher than most Arab League countries;
Whereas members of the United States Armed Forces gave their lives to protect 
        the sovereignty of Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries in 
        Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm;
Whereas Saudi Arabia has officially applied to join the General Agreement on 
        Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which binds its members to conduct trade with 
        each other on the basis of nondiscrimination;
Whereas Israel has been a member of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 
        since 1962, and Saudi Arabia has given no indication that, if admitted 
        to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, it would cease its 
        boycott of Israel;
Whereas Saudi Arabia has not formally and publicly abandoned its participation 
        in the secondary and tertiary Arab League boycott; and
Whereas it is the responsibility of the United States to only support 
        applications to join the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade from 
        countries which do not undermine the objectives of the General Agreement 
        on Tariffs and Trade by engaging in practices which distort 
        international trade: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),

SECTION 1. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of the Congress that--
            (1) President Clinton and Secretary of State Christopher 
        should be commended for engaging in a major diplomatic 
        initiative designed to encourage members of the Arab League to 
        end enforcement of the secondary and tertiary aspects of the 
        Arab League boycott;
            (2) the President and the Secretary of State should give 
        particular attention to diplomatic efforts to encourage those 
        countries that were direct beneficiaries of Operations Desert 
        Shield and Desert Storm to end enforcement of the boycott; and
            (3) the United States should oppose the application of 
        Saudi Arabia to join the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 
        (GATT), and should exercise its veto in the GATT working group 
        to that end, until such time as Saudi Arabia formally and 
        publicly renounces its participation in the secondary and 
        tertiary Arab boycott, and publicly issues the necessary laws, 
        rules, and regulations ensuring that companies from the United 
        States and other countries have free and open access to the 
        Saudi Arabia market regardless of their business relationship 
        with Israel.

SEC. 2. TRANSMITTAL OF RESOLUTION.

    The Clerk of the House of Representatives shall transmit a copy of 
this resolution to the President and to the Secretary of State.

                                 <all>
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