Bob Kerrey: “I rise today in support of striking condition 33 from the resolution of ratification of the Chemical Weapons Convention.…”

“I rise today in support of striking condition 33 from the resolution of ratification of the Chemical Weapons Convention. Condition 33 would bar the United States from ratifying the convention until the President can certify with high confidence that we have the capability to detect, within 1 year of a violation, the illicit production or storage of a single metric ton of chemical agent. As the authors of this condition fully realize, this standard is unattainable and would effectively bar the United States from participation in the CWC forever. Mr. President, I do not come to the floor as the vice chairman of the Intelligence Committee to say to my colleagues that this treaty is absolutely verifiable. The distinguished chairman of the committee indicated that Mr. Tenet, Acting Director of Central Intelligence, said it will be difficult to verify and quoted him as saying it would be easy to cheat. What he did not do, regrettably, is go on with the follow-on quote. The next sentence in his answer was, ``But, in the absence of the tools the convention gives us, it will be much harder for us to apprise you''--meaning the committee--``and apprise the military and policymakers of where we think we are in the world with regard to these developments.'' Let me be clear. The United States has made a decision that we are going to destroy our chemical weapons and try to lead the world in the elimination of chemical weapons. That is what this policy is all about.…”