Title 22Foreign Relations and IntercourseRelease 119-73

§2571 Research, development and other studies

Title 22 › Chapter CHAPTER 35— - ARMS CONTROL AND DISARMAMENT › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER III— - FUNCTIONS › § 2571

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Require the Secretary of State, under the President, to lead and support research so the United States builds practical and technical knowledge about disarmament and stopping the spread of weapons. The Secretary must make or fund studies, hire or work with public and private groups, and coordinate work with other government agencies. He must, as much as possible, use existing government and private facilities. The Secretary’s research authority is limited to 13 topic areas. These include finding, identifying, inspecting, monitoring, limiting, and eliminating weapons (including nuclear, thermonuclear, missiles, chemical, biological, radiological, and conventional); methods to detect weapon tests; analysis of national budgets and industry to estimate arms spending; control of forces in space, on land, underground, and underwater; international control organizations; training people to run control systems; reducing risks of accidental or surprise war (including better communications); studying economic, political, security, legal, social, scientific, and technical effects of arms control; and other related problems the Secretary finds need study.

Full Legal Text

Title 22, §2571

Foreign Relations and Intercourse — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

The Secretary of State is authorized and directed to exercise his powers in this subchapter in such manner as to ensure the acquisition of a fund of theoretical and practical knowledge concerning disarmament and nonproliferation. To this end, the Secretary of State is authorized and directed, under the direction of the President, (1) to ensure the conduct of research, development, and other studies in the fields of arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament; (2) to make arrangements (including contracts, agreements, and grants) for the conduct of research, development, and other studies in the fields of arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament by private or public institutions or persons; and (3) to coordinate the research, development, and other studies conducted in the fields of arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament by or for other Government agencies. In carrying out his responsibilities under this chapter, the Secretary of State shall, to the maximum extent feasible, make full use of available facilities, Government and private. The authority of the Secretary under this chapter with respect to research, development, and other studies concerning arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament shall be limited to participation in the following:
(a)the detection, identification, inspection, monitoring, limitation, reduction, control, and elimination of armed forces and armaments, including thermonuclear, nuclear, missile, conventional, bacteriological, chemical, and radiological weapons:
(b)the techniques and systems of detecting, identifying, inspecting, and monitoring of tests of nuclear, thermonuclear, and other weapons;
(c)the analysis of national budgets, levels of industrial production, and economic indicators to determine the amounts spent by various countries for armaments 11 So in original. Probably should be followed by a comma. and of all aspects of anti-satellite activities;
(d)the control, reduction, and elimination of armed forces and armaments in space, in areas on and beneath the earth’s surface, and in underwater regions;
(e)the structure and operation of international control and other organizations useful for arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament;
(f)the training of scientists, technicians, and other personnel for manning the control systems which may be created by international arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament agreements;
(g)the reduction and elimination of the danger of war resulting from accident, miscalculation, or possible surprise attack, including (but not limited to) improvements in the methods of communications between nations;
(h)the economic and political consequences of arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament, including the problems of readjustment arising in industry and the reallocation of national resources;
(i)the arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament implications of foreign and national security policies of the United States with a view to a better understanding of the significance of such policies for the achievement of arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament;
(j)the national security and foreign policy implications of arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament proposals with a view to a better understanding of the effect of such proposals upon national security and foreign policy;
(k)methods for the maintenance of peace and security during different stages of arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament;
(l)the scientific, economic, political, legal, social, psychological, military, and technological factors related to the prevention of war with a view to a better understanding of how the basic structure of a lasting peace may be established; and
(m)such related problems as the Secretary of State may determine to be in need of research, development, or study in order to carry out the provisions of this chapter.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1998—Pub. L. 105–277, § 1223(6)(A)–(E), in introductory provisions, inserted “this subchapter in” after “powers in”, substituted “Secretary of State” for “Director” wherever appearing and “ensure” for “insure” in two places, struck out “in accordance with procedures established under section 2575 of this title” after “other Government agencies”, and substituted “The authority of the Secretary under this chapter with respect to research, development, and other studies concerning arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament shall be limited to participation in the following:” for “The authority of the Director with respect to research, development, and other studies shall be limited to participation in the following insofar as they relate to arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament:”. Subsec. (l). Pub. L. 105–277, § 1223(6)(F), inserted “and” at end. Subsec. (m). Pub. L. 105–277, § 1223(6)(B), substituted “Secretary of State” for “Director”. 1994—Pub. L. 103–236, in introductory provisions, substituted “fields of arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament” for “field of arms control and disarmament” in three places, in first sentence, inserted “and nonproliferation” after “disarmament”, and in fourth sentence, inserted “, nonproliferation,” after “arms control” wherever appearing. 1982—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 97–339 inserted “and of all aspects of antisatellite activities”. 1977—Pub. L. 95–108 struck out “United States” before “private” in cl. (2) of opening par. 1963—Pub. L. 88–186 inserted “United States” before “private” in cl. (2) of opening par.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1998 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 105–277 effective Apr. 1, 1999, see section 1201 of Pub. L. 105–277, set out as an

Effective Date

note under section 6511 of this title. Report on International Transfer of Conventional Arms Pub. L. 92–352, title III, § 302,
July 13, 1972, 86 Stat. 495, directed Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, with cooperation of other agencies, to prepare a comprehensive report on international transfer of conventional arms and submit this report no later than one year after
July 13, 1972, with an interim report submitted no later than six months after
July 13, 1972.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

22 U.S.C. § 2571

Title 22Foreign Relations and Intercourse

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73