Urging the United States to continue to be a leader in supporting the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and the global nonproliferation regime to reap the benefits the NPT and such regime bring to United States and international security.

Bill: 116-hres-825
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Sherman, Brad [D-CA-30]
Introduced: 2020-01-30
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Arms control and nonproliferation

International law and treaties

International organizations and cooperation

Military operations and strategy

Military procurement, research, weapons development

Nuclear power

Nuclear weapons
Latest action: action_date: 2020-11-18
text: The title of the measure was amended. Agreed to without objection.

Summaries:
action_date: 2020-01-30
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p>This resolution reaffirms support for the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. The resolution urges the United States to continue to be a leader in promoting nonproliferation through specified measures. </p>

action_date: 2020-11-18
action_desc: Passed House
text: <p>This resolution reaffirms support for the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. The resolution urges the United States to continue to be a leader in promoting nonproliferation through specified measures. </p>

tv_txt: IV 116th CONGRESS 2d Session H. RES. 825 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES January 30, 2020 Mr. Sherman (for himself, Mr. Banks , Mr. Foster , Mr. Fleischmann , Mr. Luján , Mr. Rooney of Florida , Mr. Bera , Mr. Newhouse , Mr. Visclosky , Mr. Yoho , and Ms. Spanberger ) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs RESOLUTION Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the entry into force of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), recognizing the importance of the NPT’s continued contributions to United States and international security, and commemorating United States leadership in strengthening the nuclear nonproliferation regime since the dawn of the nuclear era.

This resolution may be cited as the NPT at 50 Resolution . Whereas the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons has been a bedrock principle of United States foreign policy since 1945; Whereas the United States and the former Soviet Union averted a catastrophic nuclear exchange during the October 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, which led to a series of bilateral and multilateral agreements to reduce the chances of nuclear war and prevent the spread of nuclear weapons; Whereas President John F. Kennedy predicted in 1963 that as many as 25 countries would acquire nuclear weapons by 1970 absent a treaty to control nuclear weapons; Whereas the nuclear nonproliferation regime, led by the United States, has been strengthened by a complex network of complementary treaties, and agreements, the cornerstone of which is the NPT; Whereas the NPT was signed by the United States, alongside the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union, on its first day of opening for signature, July 1, 1968; Whereas the United States ratified the treaty on March 13, 1969, with a vote on ratification of 83 to 15; Whereas the NPT entered into force on March 5, 1970; Whereas the NPT provides important stability for United States and international security, and its success has and will continue to depend upon the full implementation by all State Parties of the treaty’s three mutually reinforcing pillars: nonproliferation, access to peaceful uses of nuclear energy, and disarmament; Whereas United States leadership has been and will contribute to be indispensable to the development and success of the nuclear nonproliferation regime; Whereas, on May 11, 1995, the NPT was extended indefinitely; Whereas the NPT has grown to include 191 State Parties, making an irreplaceable contribution to international security by preventing the spread of nuclear weapons; Whereas only one nonnuclear weapon state that was a party to the treaty has acquired nuclear weapons; Whereas the United States has led the NPT’s disarmament pillar by negotiating bilateral arms control agreements, achieving dramatic reductions in the nuclear weapons stockpile, in support of Article VI and the disarmament aims of the NPT, such as 1972 SALT I, 1979 SALT II, 1991 START I, 1993 START II, SORT, and New START; Whereas the United States has promoted the NPT’s nonproliferation pillar by supporting states which relinquished their nuclear weapons and acceded to the NPT, such as Belarus, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, and South Africa; Whereas the United States has also been a lead supporter of many regional nuclear-weapons-free zones, including Latin America, Central Asia, the South Pacific, Africa, and Southeast Asia, and bans on nuclear weapons on the seabed, in outer space, and on the Moon; Whereas the United States has worked to ensure the peaceful uses of nuclear energy by supporting the International Atomic Energy Agency and its safeguards programs, including the Additional Protocol; Whereas every President has supported the NPT, such as when President Donald Trump noted in a message to the International Atomic Energy Agency’s General Conference September 16, 2019, For nearly 50 years, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty has prevented the spread of nuclear weapons ; Whereas, on September 18, 2018, Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Nonproliferation Christopher Ford recalled a President Trump statement in which he called the Additional Protocol the international standard , and then Ford noted that consistent with that message, the AP should be universalized ; Whereas the United States has been a strong supporter of the implementing bodies of the nonproliferation and export control regimes, such as the Zangger Committee and the Nuclear Suppliers Group; Whereas the 2018 Department of Defense Nuclear Posture Review affirms, The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is a cornerstone of the nuclear nonproliferation regime. It plays a positive role in building consensus for non-proliferation and enhances international efforts to impose costs on those that would pursue nuclear weapons outside the Treaty ; Whereas, on June 28, 2018, the 50th anniversary of the treaty first being signed, the United States, United Kingdom, and Russian governments released a joint statement, reaffirming their commitment to work toward the ultimate goal of the elimination of nuclear weapons, as set forth in the NPT ; Whereas Congress has often been at the forefront of advocating for nonproliferation, including through the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945, the McMahon Act of 1946, the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978, the Export Administration Act of 1979, the Nunn-Lugar Soviet Nuclear Threat Reduction Act of 1991, and the Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Act of 1994; and Whereas the 10th NPT Review Conference will occur during the treaty’s 50th year in New York, from April 27 to May 22, 2020: Now, therefore, be it

That the House of Representatives— (1) reaffirms its support for the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, to further reduce the number of nuclear weapons, and to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy as it has over the past 50 years; (2) reaffirms that a strong nonproliferation regime is in the United States interests; and (3) urges the United States to continue to be a leader on supporting the NPT and the nonproliferation regime, by— (A) continuing to encourage all State Parties to the NPT to comply fully with the treaty; (B) maintaining support for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) through its assessed and voluntary contributions and promoting the universal adoption of the IAEA Additional Protocol; (C) continuing to encourage opportunities for cooperation with other nuclear possessing states to reduce the number and role of nuclear weapons in their national military strategies; (D) encouraging universality of the NPT and the Additional Protocol; (E) encouraging all states with nuclear energy programs to purchase nuclear fuel on the international market and discouraging national enrichment and reprocessing programs; (F) encouraging the continuation of the global moratorium on nuclear testing; and (G) working toward a successful 2020 NPT Review Conference.

tv_txt: IV 116th CONGRESS 2d Session H. RES. 825 In the House of Representatives, U. S., November 18, 2020 RESOLUTION A resolution urging the United States to continue to be a leader in supporting the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and the global nonproliferation regime to reap the benefits the NPT and such regime bring to United States and international security.

Whereas on December 4, 1961, the United Nations General Assembly unanimously approved a resolution supporting an international agreement to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons; Whereas the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons has been a bedrock principle of United States foreign policy since 1945; Whereas the October 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis nearly led the United States and the former Soviet Union to a catastrophic nuclear exchange; Whereas the aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis led to a series of bilateral and multilateral agreements to reduce the chances of nuclear war and prevent the spread of nuclear weapons; Whereas on August 17, 1965, the United States submitted its first draft of such a treaty to the Eighteen Nation Disarmament Committee; Whereas in May 1966, the Senate adopted S. Res. 179 supporting the President’s efforts to negotiate such a treaty; Whereas the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics signed the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) on its first day of opening for signature on July 1, 1968; Whereas the Senate gave its advice and consent to ratification of the NPT on March 13, 1969, by a vote of 83 to 15; Whereas the NPT entered into force on March 5, 1970, the date it was ratified by the United States and the Soviet Union; Whereas the NPT provides stability that is critical for United States and international security, and its success has and will continue to depend upon the full implementation by all State Parties of the NPT’s three mutually-reinforcing pillars: nonproliferation, access to peaceful uses of nuclear energy, and disarmament; Whereas United States leadership has been and will continue to be indispensable to the development and success of the global nuclear nonproliferation regime; Whereas on May 11, 1995, the NPT was extended indefinitely; Whereas North Korea is the only non-nuclear weapon state that was a party to the NPT before acquiring nuclear weapons; Whereas the United States has supported the NPT’s disarmament goals by negotiating bilateral arms control agreements and achieving dramatic reductions in its own and other states’ nuclear weapons stockpiles through these treaties, including the 1972 SALT I Treaty, the 1987 INF Treaty, the 1991 START I Treaty, the 2002 Moscow Treaty, and the 2010 New START treaty; Whereas the United States has promoted the NPT’s nonproliferation pillar by supporting states that relinquished their nuclear weapons and acceded to the NPT, such as Belarus, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, and South Africa; Whereas the United States has worked to ensure the peaceful uses of nuclear energy by supporting the International Atomic Energy Agency and its safeguards programs, including the Additional Protocol; Whereas the 2018 Department of Defense Nuclear Posture Review affirms, The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is a cornerstone of the nuclear nonproliferation regime. It plays a positive role in building consensus for non-proliferation and enhances international efforts to impose costs on those that would pursue nuclear weapons outside the Treaty. ; Whereas on June 28, 2018, the United States, United Kingdom, and Russian governments released a joint statement, reaffirming their commitment to work toward the ultimate goal of the elimination of nuclear weapons, as set forth in the NPT ; and Whereas Congress has long been a leading voice for nonproliferation, including through the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945, the McMahon Act of 1946, the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978, the Export Administration Act of 1979, the Nunn-Lugar Soviet Nuclear Threat Reduction Act of 1991, the Nuclear Nonproliferation Prevention Act of 1994, and other legislative efforts: Now, therefore, be it

That the House of Representatives— (1) calls for continued support for the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, to further reduce the number of nuclear weapons, and to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy as it has over the past 50 years; (2) reaffirms that a strong nonproliferation regime is in the United States interest; (3) recognizes that the United States, through its network of alliances, has led the world upholding the pillars of the NPT and continues to work together to strengthen the NPT; and (4) urges the United States to continue to be a leader in supporting the NPT and the global nonproliferation regime, by— (A) continuing to encourage all States Party to the NPT to comply fully with the NPT; (B) maintaining support for the International Atomic Energy Agency through its assessed and voluntary contributions and promote the universal adoption of the IAEA Additional Protocol; (C) continuing to encourage opportunities for cooperation with other nuclear weapons states to reduce the number and role of nuclear weapons; (D) encouraging universality of the NPT and the Additional Protocol; (E) discouraging the unlawful spread of uranium enrichment technologies and ensuring such technologies covered under the NPT are properly verified; (F) developing policies to prevent withdrawal of additional states parties from the Treaty; (G) maintaining global moratoria on nuclear explosive testing, which is in the national security interest of the United States; and (H) working towards a successful 2021 NPT Review Conference.

Cheryl L. Johnson, Clerk.