[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 154 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. CON. RES. 154
Expressing the sense of Congress that the fatal radiation poisoning of
Russian dissident and writer Alexander Litvinenko raises significant
concerns about the potential involvement of elements of the Russian
Government in Mr. Litvinenko's death and about the security and
proliferation of radioactive materials.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 22, 2007
Ms. Ros-Lehtinen submitted the following concurrent resolution; which
was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of Congress that the fatal radiation poisoning of
Russian dissident and writer Alexander Litvinenko raises significant
concerns about the potential involvement of elements of the Russian
Government in Mr. Litvinenko's death and about the security and
proliferation of radioactive materials.
Whereas Russian dissident and writer Alexander Litvinenko, a citizen and
resident of Great Britain, suddenly fell ill on November 1, 2006, and
died three weeks later in a London hospital;
Whereas British health officials concluded, following an autopsy, that Mr.
Litvinenko died of radiation poisoning caused by ingestion of the
radioactive element polonium-210, and British law enforcement officials
have announced that they are treating Mr. Litvinenko's death as a
murder;
Whereas polonium-210, according to the Health Physics Society, radiates alpha
particles that cannot penetrate paper or human skin but, if ingested
through eating, drinking, or breathing, are extremely toxic, with the
ability to destroy cells, damage vital organs such as the liver,
kidneys, and bone marrow, cause cancer, and result in human death;
Whereas according to the Health Physics Society, just one millionth of a gram of
polonium-210 can be fatal, an amount invisible to the naked eye;
Whereas 97 percent of the world's legal production of polonium-210 occurs at the
Avangard nuclear facility in Russia, and Russia is the world's leading
exporter of polonium-210 for commercial purposes;
Whereas polonium-210 is presently neither produced in nor commercially exported
to Great Britain;
Whereas polonium-210, being especially dangerous to public health and safety if
improperly handled, may attract the attention of terrorists because it
can be easily and safely concealed and transported and is not usually
detectable by radiation detectors;
Whereas this instance of poisoning by use of polonium-210 could serve as a model
for future use of the radioactive element to assassinate individuals,
poison and kill large numbers of people, or spread general panic and
hysteria amongst the public;
Whereas Mr. Litvinenko was a former agent and official in the Federal Security
Service of the Russian Federation during the period when present Russian
President Vladimir Putin ran that agency;
Whereas in 1998 Mr. Litvinenko was fired from the Federal Security Service and
subsequently arrested and briefly incarcerated without conviction for a
criminal act after publicly accusing high-level officials of the Federal
Security Service of crimes that included plotting assassination
attempts;
Whereas Mr. Litvinenko fled Russia and successfully sought asylum in Great
Britain, becoming a naturalized British citizen in October 2006;
Whereas Mr. Litvinenko, after arriving in Britain, repeatedly accused the
Federal Security Service and many of its officers, including now-
President Putin, of involvement in organized crime, assassinations, and
other illegal activity;
Whereas on November 1, 2006, before falling ill, Mr. Litvinenko reportedly met
with three citizens of Russia, including former Federal Security Service
agent Andrei Lugovoi;
Whereas the manner in which the polonium-210 was obtained, transported, and used
must be fully investigated and revealed in order to reveal any defects
or inadequacies in the present safeguard regime for that substance
administered by the Russian Government and in order to prevent the
unlawful, criminal, or terrorist acquisition or use of polonium-210 in
the future;
Whereas the danger posed by polonium-210, as displayed by the discovery,
subsequent to Mr. Litvinenko's death, of numerous cases of its exposure
to objects and persons who had contact with Mr. Litvinenko and his meal
companions, demonstrates the threat that the proliferation and use of
polonium-210 poses to the lives of innocents worldwide, as well as to
international security;
Whereas on July 15, 2006, the United States and Russia jointly announced the
Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism, which ``will enhance
cooperation ... to combat the global threat of nuclear terrorism ...
[including] determined and systematic efforts to improve accounting,
control, and physical protection of nuclear material and radioactive
substances, as well as security of nuclear facilities; [and] detect and
suppress illicit trafficking or other illicit activities involving such
materials, especially measures to prevent their acquisition and use by
terrorists'';
Whereas on May 22, 2007, British authorities stated that they will seek to
prosecute a Russian citizen, Andrei Lugovoi, for the murder of Mr.
Litvinenko; and
Whereas the British investigation into Mr. Litvinenko's murder continues: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),
That it is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the fatal radiation poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko
raises significant concerns about the potential involvement of
elements of the Russian Government in Mr. Litvinenko's death,
and about the security and proliferation of radioactive
materials;
(2) the use of such radioactive materials in such cases
demonstrates a threat to the safety and security of the people
of the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, the United
States, and other countries; and
(3) the President of the United States and the Secretary of
State should urge Russian President Vladimir Putin and other
officials of the Russian Government to cooperate fully with the
British Government in its investigation into Mr. Litvinenko's
death and to ensure the security of the production, storage,
distribution, and export of polonium-210 as a material that may
become dangerous to large numbers of people if utilized by
terrorists.
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