|
| ||||||||
| ||||||||
|
Biosecurity Briefing
Chemical Weapons Convention to Discuss Prevention By Kunal Rambhia, April 11, 2008 On April 8, 2008, Nature News reported that the Chemical Weapons Convention is meeting from April 7-18 in The Hague, the Netherlands, to reassess the convention. During its 11-year history, “the convention has focused mainly on eliminating existing chemical weapons.” However, due to the changing landscape of technology and manufacturing, “emphasis will soon switch to preventing future production.”1 The article notes that the pharmaceutical industry is expanding and building “more sophisticated facilities that could easily be converted to produce chemical weapons.” Facilities in countries that do not have “established regulatory procedures” are thought to be most susceptible to being misused. The article notes that of the 4,700 “other chemical production facilities (OCPFs)” only 10% have been inspected by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the body that “oversees implementation of the convention.” Even fewer have been inspected in countries with a large number of facilities.1 The article also points to advancements in science and technology and “the growing interface between chemistry and biology and new technologies being developed” as concerns of the convention.1 The article suggests that not only will it be easier to make traditional chemical agents, but new weapons must also be anticipated. While the convention focuses on chemical weapons, the technological advancements and the lower barriers to production are similar to concerns regarding the production of biological weapons. References
|