*EPF204 03/23/2004
State Dept. Official Re-Asserts Support for U.N. Law of the Sea
(Testimony rebuts reports Bush administration retreating from treaty) (420)

By Bruce Odessey
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- A high-level State Department official reiterated Bush administration support for Senate approval of the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, rebutting published reports that President Bush was backing away from the treaty.

John Turner, assistant secretary of state for oceans policy, testified March 23 before the Senate Environment Committee and reaffirmed the administration position.

"I wouldn't be here testifying before you if there was any retreat or change of position of the administration," Turner said. "I appear before you today with the full support" of President Bush, Vice President Cheney, Secretary of State Powell and key national security agencies, he said.

At issue is the U.N. Law of the Sea Convention, which establishes international rules for mining in the open seas, laying communications cable, navigating the oceans by commercial and military vessels, fishing on the open seas and protecting the ocean environment.

The 1982 convention took effect in 1994 after 60 countries ratified it. President Clinton sent the treaty to the Senate for ratification, but Senator Jesse Helms, then the Republican chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, blocked action.

In February 2004, the committee -- pushed by its new Republican chairman, Senator Richard Lugar -- approved the treaty. Approval of a treaty by the full Senate requires two-thirds in favor. The House of Representatives does not vote because it has no constitutional authority over treaties.

Senator James Inhofe, Republican chairman of the Senate Environment Committee and a critic of the U.N. treaty, cited published newspaper accounts reporting that the Bush administration was retreating from its effort to win Senate endorsement for the 1982 convention under pressure from conservatives who contend it gives the United Nations too much power. Turner rebutted those reports.

He said that in November the treaty will be open to amendments, whether the United States participates or not. "It seems to me the United States ought to join now," Turner said.

He said he found it "unbelievable" that the United States might not be participating as Russia and other countries start staking out mining right claims on the continental shelves.

The United States would not need to change any environmental laws or enforcement practices as a result of ratification, he said.

Also, U.S. ratification should promote the Bush administration initiative against weapons proliferation by promoting cooperation with other countries under a common legal framework for boarding and intercepting vessels, Turner said.

(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

Return to Public File Main Page

Return to Public Table of Contents