Terror

Committee for Human Rights in North Korea
7. Other Conduct Cited
Not all of the categories of conduct the U.S. State Department has cited in its country reports
on the state sponsorship of terrorism fit within the definitions of “support,” “international terrorism,”
or “terrorist activity.” The U.S. State Department’s reporting of this conduct has sometimes
exceeded the reporting requirements of FRAA Section 140. The U.S. State Department may have
reported this conduct in accordance with other policy considerations to support a government’s
SSOT listing.
For example, State has cited Iran, Syria, and North Korea for concerns about proliferation of
nuclear and chemical weapons, and ballistic missiles. In explaining its rationale for including
this conduct in its annual reporting, the State Department said the following:
State sponsors of terrorism provide critical support to non-state
terrorist groups. Without state sponsors, terrorist groups would have
greater difficulty obtaining the funds, weapons, materials, and secure
areas they require to plan and conduct operations. More worrisome is
that some of these countries also have the capability to manufacture
weapons of mass destruction (WMD) that could get into the hands of
terrorists. The United States will continue to insist that these countries
end the support they give to terrorist groups. 112
State has historically reported on states’ WMD development and proliferation activities, even
without direct evidence that the governments in question were proliferating that technology
to terrorists. In 2002, it cited North Korea’s sales of missile technology to Libya and Syria; 113 the
following year, it praised Libya for agreeing to give up its WMD programs. 114 In 2005, it cited
Iran’s ability to produce chemical and biological weapons, speculating that Iran “could support
terrorist organizations seeking to acquire WMD.” 115 The U.S. Government also believes that North
Korea possesses, or is developing, nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons (supra Sections
III.G; infra Sections V.A & V.B).
112 U.S. Department of State, Country Reports on Terrorism 2007, 171.
113 U.S. Department of State, Patterns of Global Terrorism: 2002, 81.
114 U.S. Department of State, Patterns of Global Terrorism: 2003, 86, 91.
115 U.S. Department of State, Country Reports on Terrorism 2005, 173.
23