ACCESSION NUMBER:235041
FILE ID:TX-108
DATE:07/13/92
TITLE:BUSH ANNOUNCES PLAN TO BOLSTER NONPROLIFERATION EFFORTS (07/13/92)
1EXT:*92071308.TXT
BUSH ANNOUNCES PLAN TO BOLSTER NONPROLIFERATION EFFORTS

(Text:  ~~Bush statement on nonproliferation)  (450)
Washington -- President Bush July 13 announced steps to bolster U.S.
nonproliferation efforts including a decision not to produce plutonium and
highly-enriched uranium for nuclear explosive purposes.

The president outlined proposals to strengthen international actions against
those who contribute to the spread of weapons of mass destruction and the
missiles that deliver them.

Following is the text of the president's statement:
(begin text)
A few weeks ago President Boris Yeltsin and I agreed to the most
far-reaching reductions in nuclear weaponry since the dawn of the atomic
age.  Yet even as our own arsenals diminish, the spread of the capability
to produce or acquire weapons of mass destruction and the means to deliver
them constitutes a growing threat to U.S. national security interests and
world peace.  In a world in which regional tensions may unpredictably erupt
into war, these weapons could have devastating consequences.

That is why this administration has fought so hard to stem the proliferation
of these terrible weapons.  We look back with pride on a solid record of
accomplishment.  Membership in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty has
grown.  The Missile Technology Control Regime and Australia Group have
broadened their membership and expanded their controls against trade useful
to the development of missiles and chemical and biological weapons.  We
have toughened our nonproliferation export controls, and other nations have
followed suit.  We have seen remarkable progress in building and
strengthening regional arms control arrangements in Latin America, the
Korean Peninsula, and the Middle East.

Yet we need to do more.  The demand for these weapons persists and new
suppliers of key technologies are emerging.  Export controls alone cannot
create an airtight seal against proliferation.  In an era of advancing
technology and trade liberalization, we need to employ the full range of
political, security, intelligence and other tools at our disposal.

Therefore, I have set forth today a set of principles to guide our
nonproliferation efforts in the years ahead, and directed a number of steps
to supplement our existing efforts.  These steps include a decision not to
produce plutonium and highly-enriched uranium for nuclear explosive
purposes and a number of proposals to strengthen international actions
against those who contribute to the spread of weapons of mass destruction
and the missiles that deliver them.

While these steps will strengthen the barriers against proliferation,
success will require hard work and, at times, hard choices.  The United
States, however, is committed to take a leading role in the international
effort to thwart the spread of technologies and weapons that cast a cloud
over our future.

(end text)
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