Senator Eyes Response to End of Biden-Era Arms Transfer Policy
Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., said March 4 that he plans to introduce legislation to address the Trump administration’s recent move to repeal a Biden administration policy linking arms transfers to human rights.
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“Stay tuned,” he told Export Compliance Daily. “Obviously, something will be required now. We’re working on it.”
Van Hollen, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has criticized the decision to revoke National Security Memorandum 20 (NSM-20), calling it a “disservice to our national security, to global human rights, and to our standing around the world” (see 2502240066).
NSM-20, which President Joe Biden issued in February 2024 amid growing concern about civilian casualties in the Gaza war, required recipients of U.S. foreign military aid to provide written assurances that they would use those weapons in accordance with international law. Republican lawmakers said the policy duplicated other human rights safeguards (see 2405010082).