COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS
DANTE B. FASCELL, Florida, Chairman
LEE H. HAMILTON, Indiana
WILLIAM S. BROOMFIELD, Michigan
GUS YATRON, Pennsylvania
BENJAMIN A. GILMAN, New York
STEPHEN J. SOLARZ, New York
ROBERT J. LAGOMARSINO, California
GERRY E. STUDDS, Massachusetts
JIM LEACH, Iowa
HOWARD WOLPE, Michigan
TOBY ROTH, Wisconsin
GEO. W. CROCKETT, JR., Michigan
OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine
SAM GEJDENSON, Connecticut
HENRY J. HYDE, Illinois
MERVYN M. DYMALLY, California
DOUG BEREUTER, Nebraska
TOM LANTOS, California
CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey
PETER H. KOSTMAYER, Pennsylvania MICHAEL DEWINE, Ohio
ROBERT G. TORRICELLI, New Jersey
DAN BURTON, Indiana
LAWRENCE J. SMITH, Florida
JAN MEYERS, Kansas
HOWARD L. BERMAN, California
JOHN MILLER, Washington
MEL LEVINE, California
DONALD E. "BUZ” LUKENS, Ohio
EDWARD F. FEIGHAN, Ohio
BEN BLAZ, Guam
TED WEISS, New York
ELTON GALLEGLY, California
GARY L. ACKERMAN, New York
AMO HOUGHTON, New York
MORRIS K. UDALL, Arizona
PORTER J. GOSS, Florida
JAMES MCCLURE CLARKE, North Carolina ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN, Florida
JAIME B. FUSTER, Puerto Rico
WAYNE OWENS, Utah
HARRY JOHNSTON, Florida
ELIOT L. ENGEL, New York
ENI F.H. FALEOMAVAEGA, American
Samoa
DOUGLAS H. BOSCO, California
FRANK MCCLOSKEY, Indiana
DONALD M. PAYNE, New Jersey
JOHN J. BRADY, Jr., Chief of Staff
TONI G. VERSTANDIG, Staff Consultant
MICHAEL POLOYAC, II, Staff Consultant
BETH A. FORD, Staff Associate
DARA M. SCHLIEKER, Staff Assistant
(II)


2
Before I recognize the sponsor of the legislation, Mr. Berman, who will offer a
substitute amendment which is before the Members, I would like to commend the
Chairmen of the three Subcommittees, other than my own, to whom this measure
was referred, Reps. Hamilton, Yatron and Gejdenson, for their leadership, and hard
work, and that of their staffs, in crafting a measure that has broad bipartisan sup-
port. In drafting the Berman substitute, I know the staff drew heavily on H. Con.
Res. 298, Mr. Yatron's resolution condemning Iraqi human rights violations, and I
want to thank him for his valuable contribution to this important measure. Lastly,
I'd like to commend Rep. Berman for his diligence and initiative in bringing this
timely matter to the attention of the Committee.
The clerk will report the bill.
The CLERK. H.R. 4585, a bill to impose sanctions against Iraq.
Chairman FASCELL. Without objection, further reading of the res-
olution will be dispensed with, printed in the record, and open for
amendment.
[The bill follows:)


1 nology on the control list established pursuant to section
2-5(c)(1) of that Act.
3 (d) EXPORTS RELEVANT TO CHEMICAL WEAPONS
4 PRODUCTION.—Licenses may not be issued for the export to
5 Iraq of any chemical that the President determines may be
6 used primarily in the production of chemical weapons or may
7 be otherwise devoted to chemical warfare purposes.
8 (e) NUCLEAR EQUIPMENT, MATERIALS, AND TECH-
9 NOLOGY.—
10
(1) NRC LICENSES.—The Nuclear Regulatory
Commission may not issue any license or other author-
· ization under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 for the
export to Iraq of any source or special nuclear materi-
al, any production or utilization facility, any sensitive
nuclear technology, any component, item, or substance
determined to have significance for nuclear explosive
purposes pursuant to section 109b. of the Atomic
Energy Act of 1954, or any other material or technol-
ogy requiring such a license or authorization.
(2) DISTRIBUTION OF NUCLEAR MATERIALS. —
The authority of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 may
not be used to distribute any special nuclear material,
source material, or byproduct material to Iraq.
(3) DOE AUTHORIZATIONS.— The Secretary of
Energy may not provide a specific authorization under


1.
section57b. (2) of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 for
any activity that would constitute directly or indirectly
engaging in Iraq in activities that require a specific au-
thorization under that section.
(4) EXPORT LICENSES. —The Secretary of Com-
merce may not issue any license under the Export Ad-
ministration Act of 1979 for the export directly or indi-
rectly to Iraq of any goods or technology,
(A) that are intended for a nuclear related
end use or end user;
(B) that have been identified pursuant to sec-
tion 309(c) of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act
of 1978 as items that could, if used for purposes
other than those for which the export is intended,
be of significance for nuclear explosive purposes;
or
(C) that are otherwise subject to the proce-
dures established pursuant to section 309(c) of the
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978. .
(f) ASSISTANCE FROM INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL
21 INSTITUTIONS.—The United States shall oppose any loan or
22 financial or technical assistance to Iraq by international fi-
23 nancial institutions in accordance with section 701 of the
24 International Financial Institutions Act.


-
13
13
HR4585A1
this paragraph in order to enhance United States
foreign policy of nonproliferation of chemical
and biological weapons or missile technology; and
(ii) a list of goods and technology whose
export to Iraq could enhance the ability of Iraq
to support acts of international terrorism.
(B) REQUIREMENT FOR VALIDATED EXPORT LICENSE FOR
LISTED ITEMS.--After the end of the 60-day period
referred to in subparagraph (C), an individual
validated license shall be required under section 6
of the Export Administration Act of 1979 for the
export to Iraq of goods or technology on either list
established pursuant to subparagraph (A).
(C, EFFECTIVE DATE OF LISTS; PUBLICATION. --The
initiäi lists pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall be
established and published in the Federal Register not
later than 60 days after the date of enactment of
this Act.
(4) REQUIREMENT FOR VALIDATED EXPORT LICENSE FOR
CERTAIN END USES.--
(A) END USES SUBJECT TO REQUIREMENTS.--An
individual validated license shall be required under
section 6 of the Export Administration Act of 1979
for the export of any goods or technology to Iraq--
(i) if the exporter knows, or has reason to
33–935 0 - 90 - 2


14
HR 4585A1
.
know, that the goods or technology would be used
in the design, testing, manufacture, or use of
missiles or chemical or biological weapons; or .
(ii) if the exporter knows, or has been
informed by the Department of Commerce, that the
goods or technology would be used to support acts
of international terrorism.
(B) EFFECTIVE DATE.--Subparagraph (A) applies
with respect to exports occurring more than 30 days
after the date of enactment of this Act.
(5) RELATION TO OTHER EXPORT LICENSE
REQUIREMENTS. --The requirements for a validated license
for exports to Iraq that are imposed by paragraphs (3)
and (4) are in addition to other requirements for
validated licenses for exports to Irag that are imposed
under the Export Administration Act of 1979.
(d) NUCLEAR EQUIPMENT, MATERIALS, AND TECHNOLOGY.--
(1) NRC LICENSES. --The Nuclear Regulatory Commission
may not issue any license or other authorization under
the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 for the export to Iraq of
any source or special nuclear material, any production or
utilization facility, any sensitive nuclear technology,
any component, item, or substance determined to have
significance for nuclear explosive purposes pursuant to
section 109b. of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, or any


HR 4585A1
10
i SEC. 6. MULTILATERAL COOPERATION.
2 The Congress calls on the President to seek multilateral
cooperation--
(1) to deny dangerous technologies to Iraq;
(2) to induce Iraq to respect internationally
recognized human rights; and
(3) to induce Iraq to allow appropriate international
humanitarian and human rights organizations to have
access to Iraq, in particular the areas in northern Iraq
traditionally inhabited by Kurds.


25
farm products. I did not feel that was appropriate. All credit pro-
grams should be affected by these sanctions. We should express un-
equivocally our abhorrence with the Iraqi regime, yet we should do
more than send a signal. We should impose sanctions that hurt the
Iraqi dictator more than American exporters.
Mr. Chairman, this sanctions bill would have much more effect
on Saddam Hussein if it did something about imports from Iraq.
The U.S. is buying 675,000 barrels of oil per day from Iraq. At Mon-
day's market price of $14.95 per barrel of Arab heavy crude, that is
over $10 million a day that we are sending to Iraq. This money is
what allows Saddam Hussein to buy his Mirage fighters, T-72 tanks
and chemical weapons precursors.
The sanction that would do the most damage to Hussein's ability
to maintain his war machine is to stop the imports that provide
him the foreign exchange that allows Iraq to be the world's largest
arms importer. One day's worth of American oil imports will buy
four tanks. There are other countries from whom we could buy oil.
After all, it is not the rice, chickens, and passenger cars that
America sells to Iraq that allows Saddam Hussein to threaten to
burn half of Israel or mass six divisions on the Kuwaiti border. If it
is the right thing for America to stop selling goods to Iraq, it is
even more important to stop financing its military build-up by
buying its oil.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
[The prepared statement of Mrs. Meyers follows:]


28
Chairman FASCELL. The Chair agrees with the gentlewoman from
Kansas. If we are going to be held hostage because we need so
much oil in this country that we are willing to tolerate anything in
the activities of another government, one of the most repressive re-
gimes in the world, mass executions and horrible repression, then
we better reexamine our policy.
The same goes for agricultural products. Unilateral sanctions
have never worked too good but there comes a time if you have to
do it you have to make the statement. The Chair recognizes the
gentleman from California in support of his amendment.
Mr. BERMAN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I will try to cut
down my speech on the subject. I would like to make a few points.
First I want to express my sincere appreciation to you for schedul-
ing this markup for recognizing that the diposition, the proclivity
and course of conduct of Saddam Hussein is intolerable and re-
quires a response, which we have not yet seen from the administra-
tion.
Secondly, I want to thank the subcommittee chairman in whose
jurisdiction this legislation falls, not only you, Mr. Chairman, but
Mr. Hamilton, Mr. Gejdenson and Mr. Yatron with a particular
note of appreciation to Mr. Yatron, because so much of the amend-
ment that I am offering includes the materials which were con-
tained in his resolution on human rights abuses in Iraq and his
language with respect to a consistent pattern of behavior and gross
violations of human rights and so that he in all senses is a cospon-
sor and major contributor to this final product.
I am not going to belabor, previous speakers have talked about
Iraq, the 1925 Chemical Treaty, their use of poison gases, not only
in the conflict with Iran, but against their own people. I am not
going to belabor the demonstrated efforts of the Iraqis to smuggle
nuclear weapons components out of the U.S., again, in violation of
the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which they have signed.
Our own State Department's findings with respect to Iraq human
rights conditions refers to them as abysmal. We have a number of
hearings with respect to the major efforts of Iraq to develop a bal-
listic missile capability and they have developed three separate bal-
listic missile systems which can reach all over the region.
Iraq has not only been an obstacle to the peace proces
Middle East, but most recently, of course, notwithstanding Saddam
Hussein's speeches, he has demonstrated his concern about Pan-
Arabism does not even extend to his immediate neighbor Kuwait.
The total of this is a message which we must understand.
We win nothing and the administration will win nothing by
abusing a bully. He simply becomes bolder and more dangerous.
Consider that no one ever communicated to Iraq from the top exec-
utive level that its use of chemical weapons was unacceptable.
Iraq proceeds to use them against Iran and to use them to solve
problem, as they put it. No one ever told Iraq that it
was unacceptable to use its muscle to force higher oil prices out of
OPEC. It got its price rise and went on to demand restitution pay-
ments, debt forgiveness and border territory from Kuwait.
Appeasing a bully gets us nowhere. We have a moral obligation
to disassociate ourselves from a repressive and dangerous regime,
to deny Iraq the technology it needs, and to deny it the credit it
y. He simply becomaistration will win mine
Consider the


31 '
STATEMENT OF CONGRESSMAN CHRIS-SMITH
HOUSE FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
AUGUST 1, 1990
SANCTIONS AGAINST IRAQ
Mr. Chairman, I join my colleagues in support of the substitute
language outlining U.S. sanctions against Iraq which is before this
Committee. In the last two weeks, the Government of President Hussein
again has given the United States and our allies a reason to make
has
ent
States and our a
make
serious adjustments in our policy with Iraq.
I agree with my
colleague, Mr. Berman, that we have a moral obligation not to carry on
"business as usual" in our relations with that government, and I
believe we have no alternative but to respond with this statement of
disapproval with Iraq's recent actions and impose this list of
sanctions against the regime.
This Committee has followed closely the sequence of events in
Iraq and many of its actions have rightfully been denounced. In
April, the Human Rights Subcommittee marked up and approved H.Con. Res.
298, condemning this persistent pattern of the abuse of human rights
which has become the norm in Iraq in recent years. The world was
horrified when it become known in 1988 that Iraq had responded to
Iran's growing military pressure and use of chemical weapons with
their own chemical weapons -- not only against their enemies but also
killing innocent civilians.
-
1
-


We continue to receive reports of the torture -- in fact, the
imprisonment and torture of children, summary executions, and the
arrest and lengthy detention without trial of President Hussein's
political opponents. Thousands have been listed as "disappeared" and
the government of Iraq has failed to provide explanations for these
missing individuals.
President Hussein's warning that his country is prepared to use
binary chemical weapons if attacked, is a strong indication that he
has no qualms about violating the Geneva Protocol regarding the use of
chemical warfare. The aggressive movements taken last week to amass
as many as 100,000 army troops, as well as tanks and rockets, along
the Iraqi border with fellow oil-producer Kuwait have forced the
United States to take our national security concerns into account.
Mr. Chairman, I believe the time has come for the United States
to respond to the string of events which the Iraqis have provoked.
Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
I am offering this amendment because I think Iraq's latest
actions with respect to Kuwait is yet another example of the bullying
and threatening tactics which place President Hussein's regime totally
outside the norms of internationally accepted behavior. His behavior,
in a word, is "outrageous."


above the underlying legislation. On that we are in effect saying
that is the law and the Congress has the power on that.
On the other provisions, we want to be sure that they don't use
that regulation loophole which is what they did before in the case
of Libya. That is the one slight difference, I will say to the gentle-
man from New York, that will probably show up in the legislation
that is not in the Executive order. Which is simply a notification to
Congress, so we don't tie the President's hands.
Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Chairman, I would like to publicly commend
you for your leadership on this issue and the judgment and wisdom
and speed with which you have acted on this.
I would like to take issue with my good friend from New York. I
would like to do so with great respect to him but very emphatical-
ly. I think the invasion of Kuwait is in large measure the result of
the policy of appeasement that the State Department has conducted
vis-a-vis the blood thirsty dictator of Iraq. There are a number
of people in this room and a number of people in the media who
called for early on taking Saddam Hussein at face value as he
issued his threats.
I think it is important that in this moment of crisis we remain or
become totally unified. I would like to ask, Mr. Chairman, the
wisdom of granting all the discretion that your comments indicated
to this Administration. The Administration has shown a total mis-
of the policies and goals and modus operandi of Saddam
Hussein to the very moment that his troops invaded a neighboring
country. At that moment the Administration made a 180 degree
turn and has now issued a statement with which I certainly agree.
But that has not earned the Administration, as far as this
Member of Congress is concerned, respect for their judgment in
terms of events that led up to this tragedy. Had there been a firm
policy vis-a-vis Saddam Hussein, had there been a recognition that
his vicious and blood thirsty statement calling for the murder of
millions of people, his use of poison gas against his own civilian
population, children and women, had the Administration spoken
out, had the Administration devoted as much energy to building a
united front with Western Europe and Japan on this issue as many
of us had called for, I don't think the invasion of Kuwait would
have taken place.
So I would like to make a plea, Mr. Chairman, that we give the
Administration the minimum of discretion in removing any of the
measures the new bill contemplates.
Chairman FASCELL. Mr. Levine.
Mr. LEVINE. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I commend your leader-
ship and expedition in calling for this meeting at this time.
the leadership demonstrated yesterday in enacting Mr.
Berman's important bill was prescient. I think that your leadership
in moving us forward today is extremely important. On the one
hand I feel that my friend from New York is completely right, that
at such a time of crisis as this we should be pulling together as much
as possible and we are doing that. On the other hand, I think the
comments my good friend from California has made are extremely
important and extremely accurate and they frame to a consider-
able extent the way in which we need to be analyzing this issue
and I think the way a number of people are analyzing this issue.


51
also be making a statement which would be economically painful
both for us and for some other people. We need the help of the rest
of the world in this struggle. So the bill will call for that kind of
cooperation. We see that as essential.
I don't think anyone should be using this invasion as an excuse
to force the price of oil out of sight. If that occurs, then the United
States needs to do something. I am not advocating any specific
action right now and this legislation will not address that, but we
cannot let that happen without some response in this country. I am
sure that there is some thought there about what would happen
with oil and what else would happen.
Mr. Levine.
Mr. LEVINE. To respond very briefly, I would like to tell you that
I believe this is the appropriate balance. I think this is something
that everyone will be able to support. I think that you have gone as
far as you should and you are doing it in the right fashion, both in
terms of commending the Administration and developing a tough
legislative response.
I would say one additional thing in terms of your comments with
regard to energy which are entirely on the mark and appropriate.
At the time the Iranians and Iraqis were engaged in their struggle
in the region, we worked in a stabilizing fashion with our allies in
the Gulf to make clear that certain actions would be viewed as ag-
gressive to the entire free world.
We continue to have a presence in that part of the world that is
appropriate. We should remember that it exists. We should work
with our allies in a similar forum to let those who would drive the
price of oil out of sight know that neither the United States nor
our allies will simply look the other way if that occurs.
The fact that we continue to have a presence in that region and
the fact that we continue to be able to work in a cooperative mili-
tary fashion with our allies in that region is something that I hope
we will focus upon as an action that should not be ignored and is
something that should be pursued.
I will be happy to yield to my friend from California, Mr.
Berman.
Mr. BERMAN. Thank you. I appreciate your yielding.
I wanted to compliment the Chairman. The Chairman is gone
but I still compliment him.
Mr. SOLARZ İpresiding). The real Chairman..
Mr. BERMAN. It is not this Administration simply in terms of ear-
lier policies and looking the other way and finding geopolitical pre-
texts to avoid taking principle positions. The previous Administra-
tion started down this road in the early 1980's in the context of
the Iraq/Iran war.
If you recall, Iraq attacked Iran in that war, initiated the aggres-
sion. Because of our concern about fundamentalism and our very
understandable reaction to the hostage crisis, we had a tilt toward
Iraq as a formal part of our policy which caused us to, one, en-
courage our allies to provide military equipment to the Iraqis and
had us providing technologies to Iraq and secondly overlooked the
Iraqis' support for terrorism.
I recall the Administration took Iraq off the list of countries sup-
porting terrorism while Abu Nidal was still based in Iraq and un-


The United States of America, under many Presidents, has com-
mitted a great deal of resources to preserve stability in the Middle
East, not the least of which to the country of Israel.
For the United States to be criticized when a foreign potentate
invades is ridiculous.
I stress the United States because that is the implication when
we say appeasement.
I hope we recognize that the enemy today is Saddam Hussein,
not George Bush.
Mr. GEJDENSON (presiding.] The gentleman from Florida, Mr.
Smith.
Mr. SMITH of Florida. I am in full accord with, at this juncture,
having this committee pass a resolution that would be in the
strongest possible terms a condemnation of the conduct of Saddam
Hussein and a step in the right direction to attempt to isolate him
through a total embargo and all the other provisions of the resolu-
tion.
While I agree with Mr. Leach that this is not the time for trying
to pin blame on where we are at this time, I want to poir
int out one
inescapable fact, however.
We are about to be hoisted on our own petard with weaponry
that we have been selling in that region to countries that don't have
the capability to withstand a man like Saddam Hussein.
Where are the Stingers that we gave to Kuwait that some of us
fought bitterly against? They are now in the hands of the Iraqis.
Where are the 17 prisoners that Kuwait refused to give up in
the face of a constant barrage from their Arab neighbors because
these prisoners were involved in terrorist activities against other
nations?
They are now in the hands of Saddam Hussein and probably
being given a heroes welcome down the streets of Baghdad.
If this mad man makes a right turn and goes south to Saudi
Arabia, it won't take him a day to conquer that country and there
is $30 billion of usable arms in the hands of the Saudis that we sold
them, plus a missile system that was nuclear capable when it was
on line in China that is now on line in Saudi Arabia, they say with-
out nuclear capability.
But the system is there, 1700-mile range. That is what is avail-
able to this man. That is what we are facing and that has been the
result of our policy over a long time.
Now we are going to reap this grim reward if this mad man de-
cides to be Hitler and go in and try to help Saudi Arabia quell
their domestic violence like he said was the reason he went into
Kuwait. It is a nice ploy, but it brings us back to the 1939 era when
Poland and Czechoslovakia went like that in front of the armies of
Hitler.
We have to be more careful and more circumspect in the future.
We must pass this resolution. We must lend our support to the
President immediately to do whatever is necessary to get this
matter resolved, hopefully through the U.N. or concerted Arab ef-
forts of which there has been none.
Where are the Arab states since Saddam Hussein began all this
saber rattling against Kuwait and the other gulf states?


55
Nowhere, not even a blip on the screen except for Egypt, who
said they would attempt to mediate.
There has been no outcry from any of these Arab states.
Now they are all potential victims. We better hope he doesn't
decide to turn right and go south...
We may be sitting watching the most heavily armed small state
since the rise of Nazi Germany in the thirties, nobody better make
a mistake about that.
All these weapons in the hands of a man who has shown every
indication that he will use any weapon, including chemical, to kill
people indiscriminately. That is what we are facing.
This requires swift action, what we are doing here. ]
g here. The President
needs to be decisive and every one of our allies has to finally wake
up and realize that their pandering to this lunatic has created this
situation.
Mr. DYMALLY. Will the gentleman yield?
Mr. Chairman, point of parliamentary inquiry. I would like to
get a feel or an assurance that my suggestion for language in the
bill dealing with safety of Americans be included and I don't know
what is the mechanics of the draft.
Mr. SMITH of Florida. I would absolutely second what the chair-
man of the subcommittee on International Operations is saying,
and I would hope that we would if it is not there do something in that
regard.
Mr. DYMALLY. I have been informed by staff that the drafters
have been so informed.
Mr. SMITH of Florida. The summary of the draft bill, the draft
provision says, provides the President with flexibility to provide
humanitarian assistance, food, aid and any emergency assistance to
Iraq as he deems appropriate.
I would assume that is supposed to be Kwait.
Chairman FASCELL. No, that is—it is written backwards, Mr.
Smith. The thought is supposed to be—-
Mr. Smith of Florida. Most of the Israelis read left to right, Mr.
Chairman.
Chairman FASCELL. I understand. Maybe that is upside down.
What that tried to express, and I don't know who wrote that
summary, is this, that everything would be embargoed, including
food, medicines and whatever. The bill we did yesterday did not.
Our intention today is to pursue legislatively the Executive order
closing the door down on everything. That is what this new bill will
do. But it then provides that the extent of the matters that are not
covered by the underlying legislation the President would continue
to have, which he now has by law, the flexibility to lift that embargo
whenever he sees fit.
Mr. SMITH of Florida. I will tell you, Mr. Chairman, I appreciate
the explanation. I think this language is highly inappropriate and I
would urge us not to include this provision in the bill.
This man is an offending marauder. We should not be allowing
for this kind of relief to his country at this time.
Chairman FASCELL. The bill would not permit it.
Mr. SMITH of Florida. Does permit it.
Chairman FASCELL. No, it doesn't.


57
Mr. Chairman, the news out of Iraq and Kuwait is most disturbing
and I am sure that we will have a resolution that will be strong
and will speak with one voice.
I think the President has been decisive but we have to remain
cool, and flexibility is a key word in the modern world which
means power, and we have to give the President the flexibility and
I am sure that we will do that.
I have another issue I think that we should consider as a Con-
gress. Do we really want to whip up a lot of hysteria or do we want
to be cool about this issue. Because the real invasion is coming that
invades the consumers' pocketbooks.
Two weeks from now this is going to be history. Everyone is
going to be screaming about the ungodly increase in oil prices.
As we are looking at this resolution, as we are taking action with
regard to Iraq and Kuwait, we ask ourselves how is this going to
affect our consumers, because to get up on the Floor two weeks
from now and to scream about oil and gas prices and how they
have risen, there is no solution.
Now is the time for us to focus an eagle eye on large oil compa-
nies and what is happening with oil prices.
Mr. DYMALLY (presiding). Mr. Engel.
· Mr. ENGEL. I want to add my advice to those who have con-
demned what has gone on in Kuwait and to say that we, as a Con-
gress, must speak with one voice loudly and clearly and condemn
the actions of Iraq.
Many of us have been yelling about this for many months,
saying that we ought to take Saddam Hussein at face value when
he says that he has the weapons and the chemicals available to kill
off half of Israel and do whatever else he wants, that we believe
him, because he is someone we need not push off and pretend
doesn't exist.
I have just come back from a trip to Israel and every Israeli offi-
cial said that they viewed the threat from Iraq as real and they
think it is very important to remain strong. I think that at this
time more than one Arab state is probably secretly happy that
Israel maintains the military capability, probably the only state in
the Middle East that maintains the military capability of keeping
Saddam Hussein in check.
It is ironic to some degree that we have attempted in this Ad-
ministration to put pressure on the Israelis. They remain the only
bastion in the Middle East to be a counter to the possibility of
Saddam Hussein doing the kinds of things that he threatens to do.
I think it is very important that this Congress work closely to-
gether with the Administration. After all, we are on the same side
and while it is important to point out things that we feel the Ad-
ministration should have done and didn't do, I think it is more im-
portant to stand behind the President at this time and to work
closely with him to assure that the bloodthirsty dictator, Saddam
Hussein, and his henchmen in Iraq are put in their place.
It is important for the U.S. to have active involvement. We
cannot sit back and let other nations fill the void. It is very, very
important as we see the Soviets pulling back and pulling inward
that the United States not do the same, that we understand that as
a world power, we have an obligation to do the kinds of things that