Mike Thompson: “today I want to talk about one of the most serious issues facing the United States--the proliferation of weapons of mass…”

“today I want to talk about one of the most serious issues facing the United States--the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the means to deliver them. I also want to talk about the legislation that Senator Torricelli and I have introduced--the China Nonproliferation Act--to address this growing threat. The world is a more dangerous place today because key supplier countries like the People's Republic of China [PRC] continue to proliferate weapons of mass destruction to rogue states like North Korea, Iran, and Libya. China has sold nuclear components and missiles to Pakistan, missile parts to Libya, cruise missiles to Iran, and shared a wide variety of sensitive technologies with North Korea. Russia has provided nuclear weapons assistance to Iran, and missile technologies to North Korea. North Korea has provided missile technologies to a variety of countries in the Middle East and Africa, and openly acknowledges these sales are one of its main sources of hard currency. Many of these technologies are being used by rogue states to develop weapons of mass destruction and the means to deliver them--capabilities which are prompting many policymakers and defense experts in this country to call for the immediate deployment of a multi-tiered national missile defense system.”