Ellen Tauscher: “I rise to state my very strong support for the conference report on the International Relations Authorization Act for…”

“I rise to state my very strong support for the conference report on the International Relations Authorization Act for fiscal year 2003. I commend the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hyde); the ranking member, the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos), as well as Senator Biden and Senator Lugar, for their hard work to support the State Department at a time when alliances and international partners matter most. By paying more of our back dues to the United Nations, we are finally stepping up to the plate and being a responsible partner in this great international organization we helped create. This bill also makes a bit of history by authorizing a new way to protect the United States from the threat of weapons of mass destruction: debt-for-security swaps. In June, the leaders of the G-8 nations agreed to fund nonproliferation programs at $20 billion over the next 10 years and stated that debt-for-program exchanges should be used to stop the spread of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons.”