Chemistry International
Vol. 21, No.3, May 1999

1999, Vol. 21
No. 3 (May)
.. News from IUPAC
.. Other Societies
.. Reports from Symposia
.. 1997 Accounts
.. New Books and Publications
.. Provisional Recommendations
.. Reports from Commissions
.. Awards
.. Conference Announcements
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Chemistry International
Vol. 21, No. 3
May 1999

News from IUPAC

Project on Strengthening the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention

As negotiations to agree upon a compliance and verification protocol for the 1972 Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BWTC) approach the endgame at the United Nations in Geneva, the Project on Strengthening the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention, based at the University of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, UK, aims to raise the profile of the negotiations among interested parties in academia, science, and industry, and among policymakers and opinion formers on a worldwide basis.

The BWTC bans development, production, acquisition, stockpiling, and retention of an entire class of weapons. Unlike existing arms-control regimes that relate to nuclear and chemical weapons of mass destruction, however, the BTWC, which came into force in 1975, lacks verification measures to ensure that States Parties are in compliance with the Convention.

Since 1994, an Ad Hoc Group, meeting at the United Nations in Geneva, has been mandated to: "consider appropriate measures, including possible verification measures, and draft proposals to strengthen the Convention, to be included, as appropriate, in a legally binding instrument, to be submitted for the consideration of the States Parties".

Requirements for declarations, procedures for visits to facilities, and provisions for investigations together with safeguards for confidential information have emerged from the negotiations as central and essential elements of the Protocol. They are also the elements of the Protocol that are of greatest relevance to the scientific community.

There exists the real possibility that agreement on strengthening the BTWC will be reached over the next 12 to 18 months, although the final details have yet to be negotiated before the Protocol can be successfully completed.

For the past four years, the Bradford-based Project on Strengthening the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention has been engaged in disseminating information relating to the negotiations to interested parties. To date, the Project has provided some 19 briefing papers on issues of key importance to the negotiations to strengthen the Convention. The briefing papers have been prepared to aid the negotiators of the Protocol in successfully meeting the objectives of their mandate. Electronic versions of the briefing papers and related information have been posted on the Project's web site at http://www.brad.ac.uk/acad/sbtwc. In the near future, in order to raise the profile of this issue among the scientific community on a worldwide basis, the Project will launch an expert-level online discussion forum on issues facing the Ad Hoc Group during the final stages of the negotiations.

It is in everyone's interest that the BWTC is strengthened through the successful implementation of a compliance protocol, and it is important that the scientific community is aware of and can monitor developments in Geneva during the final stages of the negotiations.

Simon Whitby
University of Bradford
West Yorkshire, England, UK

 

 

 

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