I
105TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4545
To prohibit United States military assistance and arms transfers to foreign
governments that are undemocratic, do not adequately protect human
rights, are engaged in acts of armed aggression, or are not fully partici-
pating in the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
SEPTEMBER 10, 1998
Ms. MCKINNEY (for herself, Mr. ROHRABACHER, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey,
Ms. PELOSI, Mr. PORTER, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. KENNEDY of Massachusetts,
Mr. WOLF, Mr. CAMPBELL, Mr. LEACH, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. BERMAN, Mr.
FALEOMAVAEGA, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. BROWN
of Ohio, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, Mr. HILLIARD, Mr. LUTHER, Mr.
ROTHMAN, Mrs. MORELLA, Mr. RIGGS, Mr. LOBIONDO, Mr. MORAN of
Virginia, Mr. DEFAZIO, Ms. FURSE, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. ALLEN, Mr.
ANDREWS, Mr. BARRETT
of Wisconsin, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr.
BLAGOJEVICH, Mr. BONIOR, Mr. BROWN of California, Mr. CARDIN, Mr.
CLAY, Mr. CLEMENT, Mr. CLYBURN, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. DELAHUNT, Mr.
DIXON, Mr. FARR of California, Mr. FATTAH, Mr. FILNER, Mr. HIN-
CHEY, Ms. NORTON, Ms. HOOLEY of Oregon, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mrs.
MALONEY of New York, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. MARTINEZ, Mr. MCDERMOTT,
Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. MEEHAN, Mrs. MEEK of Florida, Mr. MILLER of
California, Mr. MINGE, Mr. NADLER, Mr. OLVER, Mr. OWENS, Mr.
PASCRELL, Mr. RANGEL, Ms. RIVERS, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr.
SERRANO, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mr. STARK, Mr. STRICKLAND, Mr. STUPAK,
Mrs. TAUSCHER, Mr. TIERNEY, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. UNDERWOOD, Mr.
VENTO, Ms. WATERS, Mr. WATT of North Carolina, Ms. WOOLSEY, and
Mr. WAXMAN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on International Relations, and in addition to the Committee
on National Security, 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 prohibit United States military assistance and arms
transfers to foreign governments that are undemocratic,
do not adequately protect human rights, are engaged
in acts of armed aggression, or are not fully participating
in the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Code of Conduct on
Arms Transfers Act of 1998’’.
SEC. 2. 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. 
3. 
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
any fiscal year beginning after the date of the enactment
of this Act unless the President certifies to Congress for
that fiscal year that such government meets the following
requirements:
(1) PROMOTES
DEMOCRACY.—Such govern-
ment—
(A) was chosen by and permits free and
fair elections;
(B) promotes civilian control of the mili-
tary and security forces and has civilian institu-
tions controlling the policy, operation, and
spending of all law enforcement and security in-
stitutions, as well as the armed forces;
(C) promotes the rule of law, equality be-
fore the law, and respect for individual and mi-
nority rights, including freedom to speak, pub-
lish, associate, and organize; and
(D) promotes the strengthening of politi-
cal, legislative, and civil institutions of democ-
racy, as well as autonomous institutions 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) 
extrajudicial 
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, national origin, or political affili-
ation; 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 humani-
tarian organizations such as the International
Committee of the Red Cross;
(D) promotes the independence of the judi-
ciary and other official bodies that oversee the
protection of human rights;
(E) does not impede the free functioning of
domestic and international human rights orga-
nizations; and
mines that it would not be contrary to the national
interest to do so, he shall submit to Congress at the
earliest possible date reports containing determina-
tions with respect to emergencies under subsection
(c)(1)(B). Each such report shall contain a descrip-
tion of—
(A) the nature of the emergency;
(B) the type of military assistance and
arms transfers provided to the foreign govern-
ment; and
(C) the cost to the United States of such
assistance and arms transfers.
SEC. 4. PROMOTING AN INTERNATIONAL ARMS TRANSFERS
REGIME.
(a) INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION.—Prior to the be-
ginning of each fiscal year, the President shall compile a
list of countries that do not meet the requirements in sec-
tion 3(a) and for which the President has not requested
an exemption under section 3(c). The President shall—
(1) notify the governments participating in the
Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for
Conventional Arms and Dual Use Goods and Tech-
nologies, done at Vienna, July 11 and 12, 1996 (in
this section referred to as the ‘‘Wassenaar Arrange-
ment’’), and such other foreign governments as the
President deems appropriate, that the countries so
listed are ineligible to receive United States arms
sales and military assistance under this Act; and
(2) request that the countries so notified also
declare the listed countries as ineligible for arms
sales and military assistance.
(b) MULTILATERAL EFFORTS.—The President shall
continue and expand efforts through the United Nations
and other international fora, such as the Wassenaar Ar-
rangement, to limit arms transfers worldwide, particularly
transfers to countries that do not meet the criteria estab-
lished in section 3, for the purpose of establishing a per-
manent multilateral regime to govern the transfer of con-
ventional arms.
(c) REPORT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning one year after the
date of enactment of this Act, and annually there-
after, the President shall submit a report to Con-
gress—
(A) describing efforts he has undertaken
during the preceding year to gain international
acceptance of the principles contained in section
3; and
(B) evaluating the progress made toward
establishing a multilateral regime to control the
transfer of conventional arms.
(2) SUBMISSION OF THE REPORT.—This report
shall be submitted in conjunction with the submis-
sion of the annual congressional presentation docu-
ments for foreign assistance programs for a fiscal
year.
SEC. 5. UNITED STATES MILITARY ASSISTANCE AND ARMS
TRANSFERS DEFINED.
For purposes of this Act, the terms ‘‘United States
military assistance and arms transfers’’ and ‘‘military as-
sistance 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 section 516 of that Act;
(2) assistance under chapter 5 of part II of the
Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (relating to inter-
national military education and training);
(3) the transfer of defense articles, defense
services, or design and construction services under
the Arms Export Control Act (excluding any trans-
fer or other assistance under section 23 of such Act
to countries that are specifically identified and ap-
proved for such assistance in law), including defense
articles and defense services licensed or approved for
export under section 38 of that Act; or
(4) assistance under sections 2010 and 2011 of
title 10, United States Code, and assistance under
section 1004 of the National Defense Authorization
Act for Fiscal Year 1991.
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