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19.22 CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTIONThe Chemical Weapons Convention creates extensive obligations for States with respectto the use and possession of chemical weapons. 271Article 22 of the Chemical Weapons Convention prohibits reservations to the Conventionand prohibits reservations to the Convention’s Annexes incompatible with its object andpurpose. 272During the negotiation of the Chemical Weapons Convention, President George H.W.Bush on May 13, 1991, announced that the United States was formally forswearing the use ofchemical weapons for any reason, including retaliation, against any State, effective when theConvention entered into force. 273The United States signed the Chemical Weapons Convention on January 13, 1993, andPresident Clinton submitted it to the Senate for its advice and consent to ratification onNovember 23, 1993. 274 In transmitting the Chemical Weapons Convention to the Senate for itsadvice and consent to ratification, President Clinton notified the Senate that the administrationwas reviewing the effect of the Convention’s prohibition on the use of riot control agents as amethod of warfare on Executive Order No. 11850, which specified the current policy of theUnited States with regard to the use of riot control agents in war, and would submit the results ofthat review separately to the Senate. 275 The review concluded that under then-currentinterpretations of the Chemical Weapons Convention, certain uses of riot control agentsauthorized under Executive Order 11850 would no longer be permissible and that a newExecutive Order on riot control agents would be issued. 276 The Senate, as a condition of its271 Refer to § 6.8.3 (Chemical Weapons).272 CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION art. 22 (“The Articles of this Convention shall not be subject to reservations.The Annexes of this Convention shall not be subject to reservations incompatible with its object and purpose.”).273 George H. W. Bush, Statement on Chemical Weapons, May 13, 1991, 1991-I PUBLIC PAPERS OF THE PRESIDENTS503 (“To demonstrate the United States commitment to banning chemical weapons, we are formally forswearing theuse of chemical weapons for any reason, including retaliation, against any state, effective when the conventionenters into force, and will propose that all states follow suit.”).274 William J. Clinton, Letter of Transmittal, Nov. 23, 1993, MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT TRANSMITTING THECHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION III (“The Convention was opened for signature and was signed by the UnitedStates at Paris on January 13, 1993.”).275 William J. Clinton, Letter of Transmittal, Nov. 23, 1993, MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT TRANSMITTING THECHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION V (“The Administration is reviewing the impact of the Convention’s prohibitionon the use of riot control agents as a method of warfare on Executive Order No. 11850, which specifies the currentpolicy of the United States with regard to the use of riot control agents in war. The results of the review will besubmitted separately to the Senate.”).276 William J. Clinton, Message to the Senate on the Impact of the Chemical Weapons Convention on the Use of RiotControl Agents, Jun. 23, 1994, 1994-I PUBLIC PAPERS OF THE PRESIDENTS 1127, 1128 (“—The CWC does prohibitthe use of RCAs solely against combatants. In addition, according to the current international understanding, theCWC's prohibition on the use of RCAs as a ‘method of warfare’ also precludes the use of RCAs even forhumanitarian purposes in situations where combatants and noncombatants are intermingled, such as the rescue ofdowned air crews, passengers, and escaping prisoners and situations where civilians are being used to mask orscreen attacks. However, were the international understanding of this issue to change, the United States would notconsider itself bound by this position. Upon receiving the advice and consent of the Senate to ratification of the1172