Washington, DC -- Today, Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA), Co-Chair of the Bipartisan Taskforce on Nonproliferation, sent a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice demanding the release of an overdue report outlining all foreign persons known to be engaging in WMD-proliferation related activities.  Joined by Reps. Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) of the Armed Services Committee and Barbara Lee (D-CA) of the International Relations Committee, Rep. Markey requested the report be released after persistent rumors that the Department of State is withholding the document from Congress because its contents would embarrass the Bush administration while it is pushing for final passage of its proposal for nuclear cooperation with India.

Markey said, “It would be absolutely unacceptable if the State Department purposefully withheld information relating to Indian entities engaged in proliferation of weapons of mass destruction until after the Congress considers the U.S.-India nuclear agreement.”

Tauscher said, “At a time when the international community is threatened by the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, it is critical that the administration release its report on persons that may have provided or received sensitive technology from Iran and Syria, two rogue nations with a poor record in this area.”

Lee stated, “Congress is now considering a bill that would open the door to nuclear cooperation between the US and India. Given the grave concerns about the nonproliferation implications of the India nuclear deal, it is staggering that the State Department could be failing to provide Congress with information about illicit transfers of nuclear and chemical weapons related technology and goods from entities located in the State of India.”

Under the Iran-Syria Nonproliferation Act the administration must submit a report to Congress every six months identifying every foreign person engaged in WMD-proliferation activities.  The last report was released in December 2005, making the current report over a month overdue.

“If the Congress is going to vote to open up the flood gates of nuclear cooperation with India, we need to know whether or not India is capable of preventing proliferation by its citizens or companies.  The Bush Administration has previously sanctioned some Indian firms and individuals for, among other things, shipping biological toxins to North Korea and shipping chemical weapons ingredients to Iran.  No new nuclear deal with India should be signed until we can prove that these activities have stopped,” Markey concluded.

The letter to Sec. Rice is below (and can be accessed here: letter to Rice re Iran-Syria Nonproliferation Act Report.pdf)

July 24 2006

The Honorable Condoleezza Rice
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State
Washington, DC 20520

Dear Madam Secretary:

We are writing to express our concern about the Department's failure to submit to the Congress the semi-annual report required by the Iran-Syria Nonproliferation Act.  

Under Section 2(a) of the Iran-Syria Nonproliferation Act, the President is required to “submit to the Committee on International Relations of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report identifying every foreign person with respect to whom there is credible information that that person” has transferred to or acquired from Iran (after January 1, 1999) or Syria (after January 1, 2005), goods, services, or technology whose export is controlled by the Nuclear Suppliers Group Guidelines, the Missile Technology Control Regime Equipment and Technology Annex, the Australia Group list of controlled items and substances relating to biological and chemical weapons, the Schedule One or Schedule Two list of the Chemical Weapons Convention, and the Wassenaar Arrangement list of Dual Use Goods and Technologies and Munitions.  Further, the President must report on transfers to or acquisitions from Iran or Syria of goods, services, or technology not controlled by the aforementioned lists but which would be prohibited for export to Iran and Syria were they United States goods, services, or technology.  Under Section 2(b) of the Iran-Syria Nonproliferation Act, the required reports must be submitted not later than every six months.  The most recently submitted report came in December 2005, making the current report over a month overdue.

As you know, past reports filed by the State Department have included information regarding illicit transfers of nuclear and chemical weapons related technology and goods from entities located in India.  Since 2003, the United States has filed at least eight nonproliferation sanctions against at least seven Indian entities, including two sanctions in December 2005.

As you know, the U.S. House of Representatives will soon consider legislation that would facilitate President Bush’s proposal for nuclear cooperation with India.  In light of the content of past reports and the pending vote on legislation implementing nuclear cooperation with India, it is essential that the State Department submit its overdue report on activities sanctionable under the Iran-Syria Nonproliferation Act, as required by law, before any such vote takes place.  

We therefore request that this report be provided to the Congress without any further delay.

                            Sincerely,

Edward J. Markey           Ellen O. Tauscher            Barbara Lee