Honorable Richard Lugar
U.S. Senator, Indiana, Republican
Senator Lugar was first elected to the U.S. Senate in November 1976. He is the ranking Republican member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The following is excerpted from a May 23, 2012, statement during the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on “The Law of the Sea Convention: The U.S. National Security and Strategic Imperatives for Ratification.” Nine years ago, the Foreign Relations Committee began consideration of the Law of the Sea Convention after it was designated by President George W. Bush as one of five “urgent” treaties deserving of ratification. The Foreign Relations Committee took up all five of…