,,iv #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,,con4 ,,res4 #ci ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,may #ae1 #bjai,mr4 ,sherman 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,banks1 ,mr4 ,foster1 ,mr4 ,fortenberry1 ,mr4 ,lujn1 and ,mr4 ,fleischmann7 submitted the following concurrent resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs ,,concurrent ,,resolution ,expressing the sense of ,congress that the ,treaty on the ,non-,proliferation of ,nuclear ,weapons 7,,npt7 continues to make an invaluable contribution to ,united ,states and international security1 and noting former ,senator ,richard ,g4 ,lugar's indispensable contributions to international security and reducing nuclear weapons-related risks4 ,whereas the ,treaty on the ,non-,proliferation of ,nuclear ,weapons 7,,npt7 opened for signature #ej years ago on ,july #a1 #aifh2 ,whereas the ,united ,states and the former ,soviet ,union averted a catastrophic nuclear exchange during the ,october #aifb ,cuban ,missile ,crisis1 which led to a series of bilateral and multilateral agreements to lessen the chance of nuclear war1 including the ,,npt2 ,whereas ,president ,john ,f4 ,kennedy predicted in #aifc that as many as #be countries would acquire nuclear weapons by #aigj absent a treaty to control nuclear weapons2 ,whereas the ,united ,states ,senate provided its advice and consent to the ,,npt on ,march #ac1 #aifi1 with a vote on ratification of #hc to #ae2 ,whereas the ,,npt has grown to include #aia ,state ,parties1 making an irreplaceable contribution to international security by preventing the spread of nuclear weapons2 ,whereas former ,senator ,richard ,g4 ,lugar made indispensable contributions to reducing nuclear weapon risks1 most notably through his leadership in standing up the ,cooperative ,threat ,reduction ,program 7commonly referred to as the 8,nunn-,lugar ,program071 which eliminated #g1fjj nuclear weapons in the former ,soviet ,union2 ,whereas ,senator ,lugar successfully secured the advice and consent of the ,senate to the ,treaty between the ,united ,states of ,america and the ,russian ,federation on ,measures for the ,further ,reduction and ,limitation of ,strategic ,offensive ,arms1 signed at ,prague ,april #h1 #bjaj1 and entered into force ,february #e1 #bjaa 7commonly known as the ,new ,,start ,treaty72 ,whereas ,article ,,iii of the ,,npt obligates each nonnuclear weapon state to the ,,npt to conclude a ,safeguards ,agreement with the ,international ,atomic ,energy ,agency 7,,iaea7 to verify treaty compliance1 #agd of which are ,comprehensive ,safeguards ,agreements crafted to detect the diversion of nuclear materials from peaceful to non-peaceful uses2 ,whereas the #bjah ,department of ,defense ,nuclear ,posture ,review affirms1 ,the ,nuclear ,non-,proliferation ,treaty 7,,npt7 is a cornerstone of the nuclear nonproliferation regime4 ,it plays a positive role in building consensus for non-proliferation and enhances international efforts to impose costs on those that would pursue nuclear weapons outside the ,treaty42 ,whereas the success of the ,,npt has and will continue to depend upon the full implementation by all ,state ,parties of the ,treaty's three mutually reinforcing pillars3 nonproliferation1 access to peaceful uses of nuclear energy1 and disarmament2 ,whereas1 over the past half century1 the ,united ,states has exhibited leadership in strengthening each of the ,,npt's three pillars for the global good1 including-- 7#a7 reducing its nuclear weapons stockpile by more than #he percent from its ,cold ,war heights of #ca1bbe in parallel with equally massive reductions of the ,russian ,federation's stockpile through bilateral coordination2 7#b7 cooperating with ,kazakhstan1 ,ukraine1 and ,belarus to facilitate the surrender of nuclear weapons on their soil after the fall of the ,soviet ,union--leading to each country's accession to the ,,npt as nonnuclear weapons states2 7#c7 providing voluntary contributions to the ,,iaea to promote peaceful nuclear activities exceeding #cgh1jjj1jjj since #bjaj1 including activities that help in the treatment of cancer and other life-saving applications2 and 7#d7 extending deterrence to ,united ,states allies in the ,north ,atlantic ,treaty ,organization 7,,nato71 ,japan1 and the ,republic of ,korea--which is an unmistakable demonstration of the ,united ,states commitment to collective security2 ,whereas heightened geopolitical tensions in recent years have made cooperation on nonproliferation and arms control issues with the ,russian ,federation more challenging2 ,whereas a range of actions by the ,government of the ,russian ,federation has led to a deterioration in bilateral relations with the ,united ,states1 including ,russia's brazen interference in the #bjaf ,united ,states presidential elections1 its violation of the ,treaty between the ,united ,states of ,america and the ,union of ,soviet ,socialist ,republics on the ,elimination of ,their ,intermediate-,range and ,shorter-,range ,missiles 7commonly known as the ,,inf ,treaty71 signed at ,washington1 ,,dc1 ,december #h1 #aihg1 and entered into force ,june #a1 #aihh1 its use of a chemical nerve agent in an assassination attempt against ,sergei ,skripal and his daughter ,yulia in the ,united ,kingdom in ,march #bjah1 its illegal annexation of ,crimea1 its invasion of ,eastern ,ukraine1 and its destabilizing actions in ,syria2 ,whereas1 within a difficult environment1 preserving agreements that continue to contribute to ,united ,states and global security1 particularly the ,new ,,start ,treaty1 is important1 and that to that end1 the ,department of ,state confirmed in ,february #bjah that ,russia had met ,new ,,start's ,central ,treaty ,limits and stated that implementation of the ,new ,,start ,treaty enhances the safety and security of the ,united ,states2 ,whereas ,united ,states efforts to reduce dangers associated with nuclear arsenals through ambitious arms control agreements with both the ,russian ,federation and the ,people's ,republic of ,china would advance ,united ,states and global security1 adding to the benefits of stability and transparency provided by existing agreements2 ,whereas1 in a ,march #bjah speech1 ,president ,vladimir ,putin of the ,russian ,federation unveiled details of new kinds of strategic nuclear weapons under development1 including hypersonic nuclear weapons1 nuclear-powered ballistic missiles1 and multi-megaton nuclear torpedoes shot from drone submarines that may be accountable under the ,new ,,start ,treaty2 ,whereas the ,russian ,federation erroneously claimed that the ,united ,states may have not reached ,new ,,start ,treaty central limits by ,february #e1 #bjah1 as is mandated by the ,treaty2 ,whereas the ,bilateral ,consultative ,commission 7,,bcc7 is the appropriate forum for the ,parties to engage constructively on any ,new ,,start ,treaty implementation issues that arise2 and ,whereas the collapse of the ,,inf ,treaty and expiration of the ,new ,,start ,treaty would lead to the absence of any binding1 bilateral treaty or agreement governing ,united ,states and ,russian nuclear forces1 which account for #ij percent of those currently in existence globally1 for the first time since #aigb3 ,now1 therefore be it #a4 ,short title ,this concurrent resolution may be cited as the ,richard ,lugar ,nonproliferation and ,arms ,control ,legacy ,resolution4 #b4 ,sense of ,congress ,that it is the sense of ,congress that-- 7#a7 the ,united ,states should continue to encourage all ,states ,party to the ,treaty on the ,non-,proliferation of ,nuclear ,weapons 7,,npt7 to comply fully with the ,treaty2 7#b7 the ,united ,states should maintain support for the ,,iaea through its assessed and voluntary contributions and promote the universal adoption of the ,,iaea ,additional ,protocol2 7#c7 the ,united ,states should-- 7,a7 consider extending the ,new ,,start ,treaty1 within the context of wider enhancement of strategic stability between the ,united ,states and the ,russian ,federation and provided the ,treaty continues to advance ,united ,states national security2 7,b7 assess whether ,russia's recently announced nuclear capabilities should be accountable under the ,new ,,start ,treaty1 and raise the issue directly with the ,russian ,federation2 7,c7 conclude an interagency process to consider an extension of the ,new ,,start ,treaty and to engage with the ,russian ,federation on the full range of strategic stability issues and other arms control and nonproliferation issues2 7,d7 begin negotiations with the ,russian ,federation on an agreement to address the massive disparity between the nonstrategic nuclear weapons stockpiles of the ,russian ,federation and of the ,united ,states and to secure and reduce nonstrategic nuclear weapons in a verifiable manner2 and 7,e7 consider the consequences of the ,new ,,start ,treaty's expiration in #bjba in relation to the insights it provides into the location1 movement1 and disposition of current and future ,russian strategic systems2 7#d7 the ,united ,states strongly condemns the ,russian ,federation's violations of the ,,inf ,treaty and its noncompliance with its other arms control commitments and treaty obligations1 and urges the ,russian ,federation to come back into full compliance2 7#e7 in responding to the ,russian ,federation's deployment of ,,inf-range systems1 advocate for those defense and deterrence steps which preserve ,,nato alliance cohesion and are aimed at averting an arms race on the ,european continent2 7#f7 pursuit of a verifiable and comprehensive arms control agreement with the ,russian ,federation and the ,people's ,republic of ,china1 which may capture strategic and nonstrategic nuclear weapons capabilities1 would enhance ,united ,states and global security by building upon other treaties1 agreements1 and transparency measures that reduce nuclear risk2 and 7#g7 the ,united ,states should continue to encourage opportunities for cooperation with other nuclear possessing states to reduce the salience1 number1 and role of nuclear weapons in their national military strategies4