1. Prepared by the Medical Association for Prevention of War Chemical and Biological Weapons

2. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 20062 Biological and Chemical Weapons Which states possess them What they are The threat of terrorism The international response

3. Where Are They?

4. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 20064 Current Stockpiles

5. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 20065 Current Stockpiles

6. What Exactly Are These Weapons?

7. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 20067 What Is a Biological Weapon? Uses a living organism or its toxic agent delivery device Both conventional and unconventional means of delivery

8. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 20068 Thin fragile aluminium cylinders filled with nitrogen under pressure to create an aerosol and release organisms when the bomb lands A PRIMITIVE BIOLOGICAL WEAPON DELIVERY DEVICE - Aerial Bomb Explosive

9. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 20069 Bacteria: Anthrax, Brucella, Melioidosis, Tularaemia, Plague Toxins: Botulinum, Ricin Rickettsiae: Q fever, Rickettsia (eg RMSF, Epidemic Typhus) Fungi: Histoplasma, Cryptococcus Viruses: Smallpox, Dengue, Yellow Fever, Ebola, Hanta, Lassa Fever, Marburg, Rift Valley fever, (Flu), Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis, Chikungunya ALSO: Animal, Plant Pathogens (eg FMD, West Nile virus, Wheat Rust, Glanders) BIOLOGICAL AGENTS WITH POTENTIAL AS WEAPONS - A Selected List

10. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200610 BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS : Choosing An Agent Availability - may be straightforward eg Iraq-anthrax (from CDC) Contagiousness - eg smallpox, plague - rapid epidemic development Mortality -eg Marburg virus Suitability for dissemination in infective form eg anthrax, Q fever highly resistant to dessication, heat, long viability Lack of effective treatment or prophylaxis: eg Ebola, Marburg, Smallpox (manipulated?) for those responsive to antibiotics (eg Plague, Glanders) look for new resistant types

11. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200611 Advantages Of Biological Weapons Multiple Methods For Delivery Wide Utility - non-discriminating, cause sickness, death, panic, may disseminate widely, may be persistent Good Logistics - cheap to make and store Versatile - can be in small or large quantities Defence May Be Difficult Cause No Damage To Infrastructure Easy To Conceal ‘Status’ WMD - ‘poor man’s nuclear weapon’

12. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200612 Slow Onset (except toxins) Indiscriminate Difficult To Control Distribution Esp If Contagious Preventive and/or Treatment Measures For Some Lack Of Impressive Precedents Level Of Technical Sophistication At Least Moderate International Taboo Disadvantages Of Biological Weapons

13. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200613 What is a Chemical Weapon? Uses the toxic properties of chemicals Inexpensive to produce Thousands of chemicals can be weaponised Both conventional and unconventional means of delivery

14. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200614 Chemical Weapons Lethal Agents Blood Agents: Nerve Agents: Cyanogen chloride (CK) Tabin (GA) Hydrogen Cyanide (AC) Sarin (GB) Blister Agents: Pulmonary Agents: Lewisite (L) Chlorine Sulfur mustard gas (HD, H, HT, HL, HQ) Phosgene (CG) Non-Lethal Agents Incapacitating Agents: Riot Control Agents: Agent 15 (BZ) Pepper Spray (OC)

15. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200615 Advantages of chemical weapons Inexpensive to produce Multiple means of delivery Psychological as well as physical impact ‘Status’ WMD - ‘poor man’s nuclear weapon’

16. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200616 Disadvantages of chemical weapons Some agents require sophisticated chemical processing Often unpredictable effects Effects may not be confined to a target area International taboo

17. How are these weapons used?

18. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200618 Both biological and chemical warfare have a very long history WWI: Chemical weapons used by both sides WWII: Biological and chemical weapons used by Japan, chemical weapons used by Germany History of Biological and Chemical Weapons

19. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200619 History of Biological and Chemical Weapons: The Cold War Dwarfed by Cold War nuclear threat Research and development continued Chemical weapons used in: Yemen Afghanistan Iraq Chad Iran Biological weapons less usable 1972 Biological Weapons Convention

20. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200620 Both chemical weapons and biological weapons have been used on numerous occasions in last 25 years Biological weapons are generally more suited to terrorist use Terrorism and Biological and Chemical Weapons

21. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200621 WHO Report ‘…every major new technology of the past has come to be exploited, intensively, not only for peaceful purposes, but for hostile ones.’ ‘..the spread of advanced biotechnology and the new accessibility of information about it offer new tools to any country or ill-minded group intending to develop a biological weapon.’ WHO 2001

22. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200622 ‘The accessibility of biological agents on a militarily significant scale has been much enhanced by advances in industrial microbiology and its spreading practice throughout the world.’ WHO 2001 WHO Report

23. Case study

24. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200624 Biological weapon first choice As early as 1990 they had a lab for biotoxins (eg Botulinum) Released Botulin toxin near the Diet in April 1990 to no effect Attempted to make an effective aerosol for Botulin, Anthrax, Cholera and Q fever 1993 sprayed Botulin toxin in Tokyo to coincide with the wedding of the Crown Prince - no effect June 1993 released Anthrax spores from a roof in Tokyo - again no observed effect Total 9 failed Biological attempts in central Tokyo Turned to chemical weapons – Sarin THEIR STORY SHOWS THE DIFFICULTY OF CONDUCTING A SUCCESSFUL BIOTERRORISM ATTACK Case Study: Aum Shinrikyo

25. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200625 Why is Anthrax So Popular As a Biological Weapon? Spores Are Tough Fairly Easy To Culture Have A Long Shelf-life

26. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200626 What is Anthrax? A Disease Of Grazing Animals Bacillus Anthracis

27. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200627 What Does Anthrax Do To a Human? A skin infection, Nasty but treatable with antibiotics More serious intestinal disease - frequently fatal Inhaling the spores – nearly always fatal Incubation period is anywhere from two days to two months

28. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200628 States That Developed Anthrax Weapons Canada Germany Iraq Japan Soviet Union United Kingdom United States

29. The International Response

30. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200630 Chemical and Biological Weapons and International Law The 1925 Geneva Protocol Prohibits the use of asphyxiating, poisonous, or other gases and all analogous liquids, materials or devices in warfare ‘Customary international law’ Bans use not possession No-first-use-treaty

31. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200631 Chemical and Biological Weapons and International Law 1972 Biological Weapons Convention Negotiations were concluded following the US unilaterally renounced biological weapons First treaty to ban an entire class of weapons Prohibits development, production, stockpiling and acquisition of biological weapons Does not obstruct non-hostile use of biological agents but still covers future weaponisation of agents

32. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200632 Chemical and Biological Weapons and International Law 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention Took over twenty years of multilateral negotiation Prohibits the development, production, acquisition, stockpiling, retention, transfer and use of chemical weapons Also prohibits states from assisting or encouraging others in relation to chemical weapons Creates Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)

33. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200633 Chemical and Biological Weapons and International Law Unresolved Issues Biological Weapons Convention Verification Non-signatories to Biological and Chemical Weapons Conventions Clandestine Proliferation

34. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200634 Non-signatories to the BWC Angola Cameroon Chad Comoros Cook Islands Djibouti Eritrea Guinea Israel Kazakstan Kiribati Marshall Islands Mauritania Micronesia (Federal States of) Mozambique Namibia Nauru Niue Republic of Moldova Samoa Tajikistan Trinidad and Tobago Tuvalu Zambia

35. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200635 Angola Barbados Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Egypt Iraq Lebanon Somalia Syrian Arab Republic Non-signatories to the CWC

36. What You Can Do

37. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200637 MAPW and the fight against chemical and biological weapons The Medical Association for Prevention of War continues to: Educate health professionals, scientists and the general public about the dangers of chemical and biological weapons Lobby the Australian government to support the Chemical and Biological Weapons Convention regimes and other related non-proliferation architecture Campaign for a world free of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons

38. MAPW (Australia) Bio & Chem Weapons 200638 Medical Association for Prevention of War Australia (MAPW) National Office: P.O. Box 1379, Carlton VIC 3053, Australia Ph: 03 8344 1637 Fax: 03 8344 1638 www.mapw.org.auwww.mapw.org.au mapw@mapw.org.aumapw@mapw.org.au Australian affiliate of International Physicians for Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW )