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DATE=10/9/98 TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-239992 TITLE=BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS (L-ONLY) BYLINE=LISA SCHLEIN DATELINE=GENEVA CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: NEGOTIATORS SAY IT WILL TAKE LONGER THAN THEY HAD HOPED TO STRENGTHEN THE EXISTING BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS TREATY. LISA SCHLEIN IN GENEVA REPORTS THE NEGOTIATORS WHO HAVE JUST COMPLETED ONE MONTH OF TALKS SAY THEY STILL DISAGREE ON WAYS TO MAKE SURE COUNTRIES ARE NOT SECRETLY DEVELOPING WEAPONS FOR GERM WARFARE. TEXT: NEGOTIATORS HAD HOPED TO COMPLETE THEIR WORK NEXT YEAR. BUT THEY SAY A DEAL IS PROBABLY NOT LIKELY BEFORE THE YEAR 2000 BECAUSE OF THE MANY DIFFERENCES WHICH REMAIN. A MAJOR DISPUTE IS OVER VERIFICATION, IN PARTICULAR HOW TO CONDUCT UNANNOUNCED INSPECTIONS AT FACILITIES SUSPECTED OF PRODUCING BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS. NEGOTIATORS SAY THEIR SEEKING WAYS TO PERMIT INSPECTIONS OF SUPPOSEDLY LEGITIMATE RESEARCH LABORATORIES WITHOUT GIVING AWAY ANY TRADE SECRETS. THE UNITED STATES HAS BEEN WORKING TO SPEED NEGOTIATIONS AND THE SENIOR U-S DISARMAMENT OFFICIAL, JOHN HOLUM, SAYS IT IS URGENT TO FIND A WAY TO STOP COUNTRIES FROM CHEATING ON BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS. // HOLUM ACT // I TEND TO CATEGORIZE BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS WITH NUCLEAR WEAPONS IN TERMS OF THEIR DESTRUCTIVE POTENTIAL. IT'S BECOME A HABIT OF OUR DISCUSSIONS OF THESE ISSUES, WE TEND TO GROUP CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL TOGETHER AND NUCLEAR IN A SEPARATE CATEGORY. BUT IN TERMS OF THEIR ABILITY THROUGH SMALL QUANTITIES TO REEK INCREDIBLE DAMAGE, BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS I THINK ARE BETTER CLASSED IN THE CATEGORY WITH NUCLEAR WEAPONS. SO THIS IS A VERY URGENT PROBLEM. // END ACT // MR. HOLUM SAYS THE SITUATION HAS BECOME WORSE NOT BETTER SINCE THE BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS TREATY CAME INTO FORCE IN 1972. HE SAYS HE BELIEVES ABOUT ONE DOZEN COUNTRIES MAY HAVE BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS PROGRAMS. THE U-S OFFICIAL SAYS THERE IS ALSO DANGER THAT TERRORIST GROUPS COULD GET BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS. ALTHOUGH THE TREATY BANS THE DEVLEOPING STOCKPILING AND USE OF BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS, THERE IS NO WAY TO ENFORCE THE TREATY OR PUNISH COUNTRIES WHICH DO NOT ABIDE BY THEM. NEGOTIATORS HAVE BEEN WORKING SINCE 1995 ON WAYS TO MAKE THE TREATY STRONGER.(SIGNED) NEB/AC/PT 09-Oct-98 6:09 PM EDT (2209 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America .