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Resolution authorizing use of US
force in Iraq
Following
is the text of a resolution to authorize the use of
force against Iraq agreed upon October 2 by President
George W Bush and House leaders.
WHEREAS in
1990 in response to Iraq's war of aggression against and
illegal occupation of Kuwait, the United States forged a
coalition of nations to liberate Kuwait and its people
in order to defend the national security of the United
States and enforce United Nations Security Council
resolutions relating to Iraq,
WHEREAS after the
liberation of Kuwait in 1991, Iraq entered into a United
Nations sponsored cease-fire agreement pursuant to which
Iraq unequivocally agreed, among other things, to
eliminate its nuclear, biological and chemical weapons
programs and the means to deliver and develop them and
to end its support for international terrorism,
WHEREAS the efforts of international weapons
inspectors, United States intelligence agencies and
Iraqi defectors led to the discovery that Iraq had large
stockpiles of chemical weapons and a large-scale
biological weapons program, and that Iraq had an
advanced nuclear weapons development program that was
much closer to producing a nuclear weapon than
intelligence reporting had previously indicated,
WHEREAS Iraq, in direct and flagrant violation
of the cease-fire, attempted to thwart the efforts of
weapons inspectors to identify and destroy Iraq's
weapons of mass destruction stockpiles and development
capabilities, which finally resulted in the withdrawal
of inspectors from Iraq on Oct. 31, 1998,
WHEREAS in 1998 Congress concluded that Iraq's
continuing weapons of mass destruction programs
threatened vital United States interests and
international peace and security, declared Iraq to be in
"material and unacceptable breach of its international
obligations" and urged the president "to take
appropriate action, in accordance with the Constitution
and relevant laws of the United States, to bring Iraq
into compliance with its international obligations"
(Public Law 105-235),
WHEREAS Iraq both poses a
continuing threat to the national security of the United
States and international peace and security in the
Persian Gulf region and remains in material and
unacceptable breach of its international obligations by,
among other things, continuing to possess and develop a
significant chemical and biological weapons capability,
actively seeking a nuclear weapons capability and
supporting and harboring terrorist organizations,
WHEREAS Iraq persists in violating resolutions
of the United Nations Security Council by continuing to
engage in brutal repression of its civilian population
thereby threatening international peace and security in
the region by refusing to release, repatriate or account
for non-Iraqi citizens wrongfully detained by Iraq,
including an American serviceman, and by failing to
return property wrongfully seized by Iraq from Kuwait,
WHEREAS the current Iraqi regime has
demonstrated its capability and willingness to use
weapons of mass destruction against other nations and
its own people,
WHEREAS the current Iraqi regime
has demonstrated its continuing hostility toward and
willingness to attack the United States, including by
attempting in 1993 to assassinate former President Bush
and by firing on many thousands of occasions on United
States and Coalition Armed Forces engaged in enforcing
the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council,
WHEREAS members of Al Qaida, an organization
bearing responsibility for attacks on the United States,
its citizens, and interests, including the attacks that
occurred on Sept. 11, 2001, are known to be in Iraq,
WHEREAS Iraq continues to aid and harbor other
international terrorist organizations, including
organizations that threaten the lives and safety of
American citizens,
WHEREAS the attacks on the
United States of Sept. 11, 2001, underscored the gravity
of the threat posed by the acquisition of weapons of
mass destruction by international terrorist
organizations,
WHEREAS Iraq's demonstrated
capability and willingness to use weapons of mass
destruction, the risk that the current Iraqi regime will
either employ those weapons to launch a surprise attack
against the United States or its Armed Forces or provide
them to international terrorists who would do so and the
extreme magnitude of harm that would result to the
United States and its citizens from such an attack,
combine to justify action by the United States to defend
itself,
WHEREAS United Nations Security Council
Resolution 678 authorizes the use of all necessary means
to enforce United Nations Security Council Resolution
660 and subsequent relevant resolutions and to compel
Iraq to cease certain activities that threaten
international peace and security, including the
development of weapons of mass destruction and refusal
or obstruction of United Nations weapons inspections in
violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution
687, repression of its civilian population in violation
of United Nations Security Council Resolution 688, and
threatening its neighbors or United Nations operations
in Iraq in violation of United Nations Security Council
Resolution 949,
WHEREAS Congress in the
Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq
Resolution (Public Law 102-1) has authorized the
president "to use United States Armed Forces pursuant to
United Nations Security Council Resolution 678 (1990) in
order to achieve implementation of Security Council
Resolutions 660, 661, 662, 664, 665, 666, 667, 669, 670,
674, and 677,"
WHEREAS in December 1991,
Congress expressed its sense that it "supports the use
of all necessary means to achieve the goals of United
Nations Security Council Resolution 687 as being
consistent with the Authorization of Use of Military
Force Against Iraq Resolution (Public Law 102-1)," that
Iraq's repression of its civilian population violates
United Nations Security Council Resolution 688 and
"constitutes a continuing threat to the peace, security,
and stability of the Persian Gulf region," and that
Congress, "supports the use of all necessary means to
achieve the goals of United Nations Security Council
Resolution 688",
WHEREAS the Iraq Liberation Act
(Public Law 105-338) expressed the sense of Congress
that it should be the policy of the United States to
support efforts to remove from power the current Iraqi
regime and promote the emergence of a democratic
government to replace that regime,
WHEREAS on
Sept. 12, 2002, President Bush committed the United
States to "work with the United Nations Security Council
to meet our common challenge" posed by Iraq and to "work
for the necessary resolutions," while also making clear
that "the Security Council resolutions will be enforced,
and the just demands of peace and security will be met,
or action will be unavoidable,"
WHEREAS the
United States is determined to prosecute the war on
terrorism and Iraq's ongoing support for international
terrorist groups combined with its development of
weapons of mass destruction in direct violation of its
obligations under the 1991 cease-fire and other United
Nations Security Council resolutions make clear that it
is in the national security interests of the United
States and in furtherance of the war on terrorism that
all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions
be enforced, including through the use of force if
necessary,
WHEREAS Congress has taken steps to
pursue vigorously the war on terrorism through the
provision of authorities and funding requested by the
president to take the necessary actions against
international terrorists and terrorist organizations,
including those nations, organizations or persons who
planned, authorized, committed or aided the terrorist
attacks that occurred on Sept. 11, 2001, or harbored
such persons or organizations,
WHEREAS the
president and Congress are determined to continue to
take all appropriate actions against international
terrorists and terrorist organizations, including those
nations, organizations or persons who planned,
authorized, committed or aided the terrorist attacks
that occurred on Sept. 11, 2001, or harbored such
persons or organizations,
WHEREAS the president
has authority under the Constitution to take action in
order to deter and prevent acts of international
terrorism against the United States, as Congress
recognized in the joint resolution on Authorization for
Use of Military Force (Public Law 107-40), and
WHEREAS it is in the national security of the
United States to restore international peace and
security to the Persian Gulf region;
Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate and
House of Representatives of the United States of America
in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1:
This
joint resolution may be cited as the "Authorization for
the Use of Military Force Against Iraq."
SECTION
2:
SUPPORT FOR UNITED STATES DIPLOMATIC EFFORTS.
The Congress of the United States supports the
efforts by the president to:
(a) strictly
enforce through the United Nations Security Council all
relevant Security Council resolutions applicable to Iraq
and encourages him in those efforts; and
(b)
obtain prompt and decisive action by the Security
Council to ensure that Iraq abandons its strategy of
delay, evasion and noncompliance and promptly and
strictly complies with all relevant Security Council
resolutions.
SECTION 3:
AUTHORIZATION
FOR USE OF UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES.
(a)
AUTHORIZATION. The president is authorized to use the
Armed Forces of the United States as he determines to be
necessary and appropriate in order to
(1) defend
the national security of the United States against the
continuing threat posed by Iraq; and
(2) enforce
all relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions
regarding Iraq.
(b) PRESIDENTIAL determination.
In connection with the exercise of the authority
granted in subsection (a) to use force the president
shall, prior to such exercise or as soon there after as
may be feasible, but no later than 48 hours after
exercising such authority, make available to the Speaker
of the House of Representatives and the president pro
tempore of the Senate his determination that
(1)
reliance by the United States on further diplomatic or
other peaceful means alone either (A) will not
adequately protect the national security of the United
States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq or
(B) is not likely to lead to enforcement of all relevant
United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding
Iraq, and
(2) acting pursuant to this resolution
is consistent with the United States and other countries
continuing to take the necessary actions against
international terrorists and terrorist organizations,
including those nations, organizations or persons who
planned, authorized, committed or aided the terrorists
attacks that occurred on Sept. 11, 2001.
(c) WAR
powers resolution requirements.
(1) Specific
statutory authorization. Consistent with section 8(a)(1)
of the War Powers Resolution, the Congress declares that
this section is intended to constitute specific
statutory authorization within the meaning of section
5(b) of the War Powers Resolution.
(2)
Applicability of other requirements. Nothing in this
resolution supersedes any requirement of the War Powers
Resolution.
SECTION 4:
REPORTS TO
CONGRESS.
(a) The president shall, at least once
every 60 days, submit to the Congress a report on
matters relevant to this joint resolution, including
actions taken pursuant to the exercise of authority
granted in section 2 and the status of planning for
efforts that are expected to be required after such
actions are completed, including those actions described
in section 7 of Public Law 105-338 (the Iraq Liberation
Act of 1998).
(b) To the extent that the
submission of any report described in subsection (a)
coincides with the submission of any other report on
matters relevant to this joint resolution otherwise
required to be submitted to Congress pursuant to the
reporting requirements of Public Law 93-148 (the War
Powers Resolution), all such reports may be submitted as
a single consolidated report to the Congress.
(c) To the extent that the information required
by section 3 of Public Law 102-1 is included in the
report required by this section, such report shall be
considered as meeting the requirements of section 3 of
Public Law 102-1.
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