Agenda Item 162: International Convention Against the Reproductive Cloning of Human Beings

The United States is pleased to join consensus on this procedural decision, which will enable the Sixth Committee to continue discussion of a Convention on Cloning at the next General Assembly. We note that paragraph (b) of the decision sets forth the mandate for the next session in neutral terms. The Working Group will continue the work undertaken during this session, which has focused on the scope of a future convention.

The United States and many other member states support a total ban on human cloning. We are hopeful that future discussions will advance the work on this topic and enable us to begin work on a convention to ban all cloning of human embryos. Although the item has been reinscribed using its current title, this in no way prejudges the outcome of those discussions, especially since many scientists point out that all cloning that creates human embryos is, in effect, reproductive.

Our focus in these discussions has been and remains the elaboration of a comprehensive ban on human cloning. We believe that the growing support for a total ban signals that a course correction is underway and that the trend toward a total ban will forge a clear path toward a Convention to prohibit all cloning of human embryos.