The United States and Mongolia Proliferation Security Initiative Shipboarding Agreement

On Tuesday, October 23, 2007, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John D. Negroponte and Mongolian Foreign Minister N. Enkhbold signed a bilateral Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) shipboarding agreement.  This is the eighth PSI shipboarding agreement signed by the United States.

This agreement is an important indication of Mongolia’s commitment to combating WMD proliferation trafficking and its readiness to ensure that maritime vessels flying its flag are not abused by proliferators.  The PSI shipboarding agreement will facilitate cooperation between the United States and Mongolia to prevent illicit shipments by sea of weapons of mass destruction, their delivery systems, or related materials.  It establishes procedures for obtaining approval, boarding and searching vessels suspected of carrying such prohibited items that are located in international waters.  If a U.S. or Mongolian flagged vessel is suspected of carrying proliferation-related cargo, either Party to this agreement can request the other to confirm the nationality of the ship in question and, if needed, to authorize the boarding, search, and possible detention of the vessel and its cargo.

More than 80 countries on six continents are PSI participants, having endorsed the PSI Statement of Interdiction Principles.  For more information on the Proliferation Security Initiative, please see the State Department’s website:  http://www.state.gov/t/isn/c10390.htm .