Expand All Collapse All Extent 10 folders, approximately 772 pages Summary This collection consists of records related to an international dispute over the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. It contains National Security Council cables and emails concerning White House press briefings, trade issues with China, and Most Favored Nation (MFN) negotiations. The collection also includes a set of 49 letters to various Congressmen responding to their critique of the Clinton administration’s policy toward China, Taiwan, and the World Trade Organization. Scope and Content Note The materials in FOIA 2012-0978-F are a selective body of documents responsive to the topic of the FOIA. Researchers should consult the archivist about related material. The Spratly islands are a group of hundreds of small islands, islets, reefs, cays and atolls in the South China Sea. The archipelago consists of only 490 acres of land but is spread out over more than 164,000 square miles of ocean. This large area is situated in a vital sea lane and is a disputed territory claimed variously by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, Brunei and Vietnam. Although the islands have no indigenous inhabitants and very little vegetation of any kind, geological surveys have indicated the possibility of gas and oil reserves in the area, and the islands are located in one of the most fertile fishing areas in the world. In February of 1995, the Philippine navy discovered Chinese constructed buildings and markers on an islet named Mischief Reef, and in March of 1995, the Philippine navy seized a number of Chinese fishing boats in the area and destroyed the concrete markers on the reef. The United States’ consistent position on the Spratly Islands dispute during the Clinton Administration, was that international organizations such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) should be major players in any territorial negotiations. The Clinton Administration also argued that support for the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) was extremely important. This dispute was somewhat complicated in the United States by the simultaneous Congressional negotiations over the extension of MFN (Most Favored Nation) tariff treatment to China. This collection consists of cables and emails concerning White House press briefings and trade issues with China and about the MFN negotiations. This collection also contains a set of 49 letters to various Congressmen responding to their critique of the Clinton Administration’s policy toward China, Taiwan, and the World Trade organization. This collection also consists of email from the Automated Records Management System that contain USIA (United States Information Agency) foreign media reaction reports concerning the Spratly Islands dispute. Record Type Textual System of Arrangement Records that are responsive to this FOIA request were found in these collection areas— Presidential Records: Automated Records Management System; and Clinton Presidential Records: NSC Cable, Email, and Records Management Systems. The Automated Records Management System (ARMS) is a database that contains email records of the Executive Office of the President. This system maintained unclassified Presidential email. The ARMS database is comprised of six sub-series of email records called "buckets." The buckets generally represent a specific White House office. The buckets are titled: NPR for National Performance Review, OPD for Office of Policy Development, POTUS for President of the United States, WHO for White House Office, CEA for Council of Economic Advisers, and Default for emails not associated with an office. The WHO bucket contains email created or received by individual with an Executive Office of the President White House user account not identified as CEA, NPR, or OPD. ARMS emails are arranged by topic, there-under by bucket, and there-under chronologically by creation date. Access Collection is open to all researchers. Access to Clinton Presidential Records is governed by the Presidential Records Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. Chapter 22, as amended) and the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552, as amended) and therefore records may be restricted in whole or in part in accordance with legal exemptions. Copyright Documents in this collection that were prepared by officials of the United States government as part of their official duties are in the public domain. Researchers are advised to consult the copyright law of the United States (17 U.S.C. Chapter 1) which governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Provenance Official records of William Jefferson Clinton’s presidency are housed at the Clinton Presidential Library and administered by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) under the provisions of the Presidential Records Act (PRA). Processed by Staff Archivist, 2016. Previously restricted materials are added as they are released. Last Modified Date 2017-08-10 Container List The following is a list of documents and folders processed in response to FOIA 2017-0036-F: Box 1 Clinton Presidential Records: Automated Records Management System [Email] WHO [500000] [Spratly Islands] [02/16/1995 – 03/01/1995] Clinton Presidential Records: NSC Cable, Email, and Records Management System NSC Cables Jan 1993-Dec 1994 [OA/ID 505000] [Spratley, China, Philippines …] [10/08/1994 – 12/15/1994] Jan 1995-Dec 1996 [OA/ID 510000] [Spratley, China, Philippines …] [02/11/1995 – 03/10/1995] [03/15/1995 – 03/31/1995] NSC Email MsMail-Record (Sept 94-Sept 97) [OA/ID 590000] [Spratley, China, Philippines …] [04/24/1995 – 04/29/1997] [05/19/1997 – 05/20/1997] MsMail-Non-Record (Sept 94-Sept 97) [OA/ID 605000] [02/13/1995 – 05/15/1997] NSC Records Management System [Spratley, China, Philippines …] 9902403 [1] [OA/ID 2721] 9902403 [2] [OA/ID 2721] 9902403 [3] [OA/ID 2721]