The Foreign Relations Authorization Act for FY2010 was voted on yesterday (June 10) in the House of Representatives. The Bill passed successfully by a vote of 235 to 187. Through a mass "vote alert" to foreign policy staffers on the Hill, Citizens for Global Solutions helped to successfully defeat an amendment aimed at limiting United States funding for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). This was not the only victory of the day as the House passed several amendments dealing with human and women's rights in Afghanistan, the elimination of the use of child soldiers, and the establishment of a Global Clean Energy Exchange Program.

This Bill is a huge step forward for the United States in terms of international diplomacy. In addition to the important language on repaying our dues to the United Nations and other international organizations, these extra amendments are steps forward for the United States' human rights and environmental policy agendas. Citizens for Global Solutions applauds the House for passing this Bill, and hope to see this positive foreign policy trend continue in the Senate Authorization Bill that should be released soon.

The White House released its list of treaty priorities for the 111th Congress last week. Here is the complete list of treaties that the administration supports immediate action on:

Comprehensive Nuclear- Test-Ban Treaty, done at New York September 10, 1996 and signed by the United States on September 24, 1996 (Treaty Doc. 105-28); submitted to the Senate on September 23, 1997.

Treaty with Australia Concerning Defense Trade Cooperation, done at Sydney September 5,2007 (Treaty Doc. 110-10); submitted to the Senate on December 3, 2007.

Treaty with the United Kingdom Concerning Defense Trade Cooperation, done at Washington and London on June 21 and 26, 2007 (Treaty Doc. 110-7); submitted to the Senate on September 20,2007.

Annex VI on Liability Arising From Environmental Emergencies to the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty, adopted on June 14, 2005 (Treaty Doc. 111-2); submitted to the Senate on April 2, 2009.

Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, done at Canberra on June 19,2001 (Treaty Doc. 110-22); submitted to the Senate on September 26,2008.

International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, adopted on November 3,2001 and signed by the United States on November 3, 2002 (Treaty Doc. 110-19); submitted to the Senate on July 7, 2008.

1996 Protocol to the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter, 1972. Done at London November 7, 1996; signed by the United States on March 31, 1998 (Treaty Doc. 110-5); submitted to the Senate on September 4, 2007.

Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, done at Stockholm May 22, 2001 and signed by the United States on May 23, 2001 (Treaty Doc. 107-5); submitted to the Senate on May 7, 2002.

Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade, done at Rotterdam September 10, 1998 and signed by the United States on September 11,1998 (Treaty Doc. 106-21); submitted to the Senate on February 9, 2000.

Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, done at New York December 18, 1979 and signed by the United States on July 17, 1980 (Treaty Doc. Ex. R, 96th Cong., 2nd Sess.); submitted to the Senate on November 12, 1980.

Treaty between the United States and Rwanda Concerning the Encouragement and Reciprocal Protection of Investment, signed at Kigali on February 19,2008 (Treaty Doc. 110-23); submitted to the Senate on November 20,2008.

Convention between the United States and Malta for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Respect to Taxes on Income, done at Valletta August 8, 2008 (Treaty Doc. 1I I-I); submitted to the Senate on January 15,2009.

International Labor Organization Convention No. 111 Concerning Discrimination in Respect of Employment and Occupation, adopted by the International Labor Conference at its 42nd Session held at Geneva on June 25, 1958 (Treaty Doc. 105-45); submitted to the Senate on May 18, 1998.

Inter-American Convention Against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, and other Related Materials, done at Washington November 13, 1997 and signed by the United States on November 14, 1997 (Treaty Doc. 105-49); submitted to the Senate on June 9, 1998.

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, done at Montego Bay December 10, 1982 (the "Convention") and the Agreement relating to Implementation of Part XI of the Convention, done at New York July 28, 1994 (the "Agreement"); Agreement signed by the United States on July 29, 1994 (Treaty Doc. 103-39); submitted to the Senate on October 7, 1994.

Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel, done at New York December 9, 1994 and signed by the United States on December 19, 1994 (Treaty Doc. 107-1); submitted to the Senate on January 3, 2001.

Hague Convention on the International Recovery of Child Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance, adopted at The Hague on November 23, 2007, and signed by the United States on that same date (Treaty Doc. 110-21); submitted to the Senate on September 8, 2008

Citizens for Global Solutions was excited to see that three treaties that we have been lobbying for are included in this list. Ratifying the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) would be a huge step forward for America's leadership internationally.

To read the entire priority list, click here.

I attended the House Foreign Affairs Committee Mark-Up Hearing for the Foreign Relations Authorization Bill today, and I was pleased to see that the Bill will be accepted with limited amendments. The amendments that have been added only seek to expand and suggest areas that the State Department should use its funds, not to inhibit the progress of or cut back on the amount of funding for State Department actions. Though it went through successfully, it was not without opposition from the Republican minority. They suggested an amendment in the form of a substitute Bill that would have eliminated the repayment of arrearages to the United Nations, capped increases in funding at 3.7% (the current rate of inflation) of the previous year's numbers, and eliminated funding for U.N. peacekeeping operations, Though the substitute was voted down, I think it's time for our Republican Congresspeople to learn from their elders...

On Wednesday May 20, 2009, the full House Committee on Foreign Affairs will meet to discuss H.R. 2410, the Foreign Relations Authorization Bill introduced by Committee Chairman Howard Berman (D-CA). Citizens for Global Solutions applauds Mr. Berman for his attention to the need for increased engagement between the United States and the international community. The Bill includes legislation that runs parallel to the interests of Citizens for Global Solutions, and we encourage the rest of the Committee to support these measures.

The legislation that we find most important includes:

1. Paying back our dues and arrearages to the United Nations and other international organizations, as well as synchronizing our payments so that they are received at the first of the year for which they apply;

2. Reauthorizing and expanding the Global Peace Operations Initiative (GPOI);

3. Paying our share of international peacekeeping activities, as well as increasing our logistical support for such missions; and

4. Developing our capacity for early warning and genocide prevention to combat situations where mass atrocities against civilians occur.

We urge the Committee to pass this legislation as is in order to show that the United States is committed to working both with the international community and from within to meet the challenges that our world faces today.

Press Release

The United States Mission to the United Nations released its Progress Report last week, giving a positive outlook on future US-UN relations and US engagement on international issues. The biggest thing to take from the Progress Report is that the current administration has acknowledged that and promoted the idea that international engagement is required to meet modern threats.

"We are showing the world that a new era of engagement has begun. For we know that America cannot meet the threats of this century alone, but the world cannot meet them without America." -President Barack H. Obama, Feb. 24, 2009

More importantly, the administration has put forth the idea that America should be leading the world in international affairs and in its engagement with the UN. As the largest contributor (and host country) to the United Nations, the US should be engaging the UN in a productive way to ensure that the organization moves in a direction that will benefit all nations. The antagonistic stance taken by the previous administration towards the UN has tarnished our reputation internationally, but the Obama administration has already taken great strides to reaffirm our commitment to multilateralism.

The current United States Mission to the UN has already been focused on many issues important to Citizens for Global Solutions. Ambassador Rice has been deeply involved in efforts to resolve the conflict in Darfur and praised the ICC indictment of Sudanese President Bashir. On global climate change, President Obama announced the launching of a Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate, holding the first preparatory session in Washington on April 27-28. These talks are crucial to success at the Copenhagen conference in December. Lastly, the administrations dedication to human rights was shown in running for a seat on the UN Human Rights Council, an important step to reforming the organization to effectively combat human rights abuses globally.

A House of Representatives Resolution (H.RES.363) was introduced on April 23 by Lynn Woolsey of California. The resolution calls for a "smart security platform for the 21st century," and its ideas and suggestions run parallel to the goals and ideas of Citizens for Global Solutions.

The resolution calls for:

1. Strengthening international institutions by working with the UN and other international institutions.

2. Adhering to, supporting, and strengthening existing and future nonproliferation treaties and, more importantly, for the US to set an example for the rest of the world by taking the lead on renouncing nuclear weapons tests and the development of new weapons.

3. Addressing the root causes of violent conflict in the world by integrating peace-building and conflict prevention into US development programs and engaging the international community in post-conflict reconstruction and political transition processes.

4. Greater investment in long-term sustainable and renewable energy sources to confront the threat of global warming.

5. Pursuing to the fullest extent alternatives to war through early warning systems, human rights monitoring, and multilateral rapid response mechanisms

These guidelines for a new US security platform are the ideas that Citizens for Global Solutions has presented for so long. These are the ideas that will strengthen the global community and allow us to work together to resolve and defeat global crises, from war and nuclear proliferation to energy and climate change.

George Perkovich, the Vice President of Studies and the Director of the Non-proliferation Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, spoke on April 20, 2009 about the prospects of reducing global nuclear stocks to zero. He discussed the numerous issues that must be resolved in order to even begin a discussion on going to zero nukes, but focused on one central issue that needs to be the first step: Bilateral negotiations between the US and Russia and between the US and China.

It may come as no surprise that these countries are at the heart of the issue. The US and Russia have by far the largest nuclear stockpiles in the world and China, though they possess far fewer nukes, is the up and coming superpower that could eventually catch up with the other two. They each also have a large amount of influence over their allies, and the power to coerce them into action.

If the US, Russia, and China can all get on the same page, they will be able to deal with some of the more specific issues that are stalemating progress towards disarmament. The issues that Dr. Perkovich highlighted were the Iran issue (Russian influence), the Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty (getting China on board), and the issue of extended deterrence without nuclear weapons (US influence to strengthen Russia-Europe relations and China-East Asia relations).

As Dr. Perkovich describes it, the Road to Zero Nukes is an uphill battle, but one that is possible to win. Not only would zero nukes ensure a more peaceful global environment, the path to achieving it will bring the major powers together for a common goal, thus forming a relationship based on cooperation rather than opposition.