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01 June 2004

U.S. Notes First Anniversary of Proliferation Security Initiative

More than 60 governments now participate, White House says

More than 60 nations have joined with the United States in the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) to combat the trade in weapons of mass destruction, the White House announced June 1.

Announced by President Bush in May 2003, PSI currently focuses on taking practical steps to interdict proliferation shipments of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), delivery systems, and related materials at sea, in the air, or on land. Bush proposed in February 2004 that participants in the PSI and other willing nations expand their focus and use Interpol and other mechanisms for law enforcement cooperation to take additional actions to pursue proliferators and end their operations.

Following is the text of the statement:

(begin text)

THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
June 1, 2004

STATEMENT BY THE PRESS SECRETARY
Proliferation Security Initiative

The United States welcomes the participation of more than 60 nations from across the globe in the first anniversary meeting of the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), held in Krakow, Poland. One year ago, in announcing this initiative, President Bush emphasized the need for the international community to act effectively to stop the trade in weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and their related components.

Today's meeting highlights the success of PSI in building a global network of countries willing to cooperate to prevent rogue states and non-state actors from acquiring WMD, interdicting shipments at sea, in the air, and on land. PSI supporters are committed to take action, consistent with their national legal authorities and international law and frameworks, to disrupt this deadly traffic and to prosecute proliferators and bring them to justice. PSI has already achieved great success and now plays a central role in our overall efforts to counter WMD proliferation.

(end text)

(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

This page printed from: http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2004&m=June&x=20040601154212adynned0.821911&t=livefeeds/wf-latest.html