News

Tracking Number:  196571

Title:  "US Opposes Biological Weapons Verification Regime." The verification regime planned for the international chemical weapons ban would be an inappropriate model for the Biological Weapons Convention and could even harm the effectiveness of the convention says Assistant ACDA Director Michael Moodie. (910911)

Translated Title:  EU opuesto a regime verificacion armas biologicas.; Opposition des E-U au plan sur les armes biologiques. (910911)
Author:  NEWMANN, ROBIN (USIA STAFF WRITER)
Date:  19910911

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09/11/91 U.S. OPPOSES BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS VERIFICATION REGIME (Inspections "tell you nothing," Moodie says) (570) By Robin Newmann USIA European Correspondent

Geneva -- The verification regime planned for the international chemical weapons ban would be an inappropriate model for the Biological Weapons Convention, and could even harm the effectiveness of the convention, says a U.S. arms control official.

Michael Moodie, assistant director of the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency (ACDA) Bureau for Multilateral Affairs, told a news briefing in Geneva September 11 that proposed on-site inspections of countries suspected of developing biological agents for hostile purposes could "convey a false sense of confidence" in the convention.

"Given the nature of the biological weapons production process, we know of no way to effectively verify that convention," Moodie said. And "I don't think that international inspections would serve that purpose."

"You can verify what they (suspected violators) want you to see, and in that way convey a false sense of confidence that the state in question is abiding by its obligations," he said. "It tells you nothing about what it might be trying to hide."

Moodie is deputy head of the U.S. delegation to the current three-week conference in Geneva to review implementation of the 1972 Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention, which prohibits the development, production and stockpiling of biological (bacteriological) and toxin weapons.

Some of the 118 parties to the convention attending the conference have indicated that they would like to look into a verification regime for the convention.

Moodie said that the United States seeks more confidence- building measures to strengthen the biological weapons convention, including transparency and openness by states- parties concerning their biological activities, as well as national export and other controls on technology and equipment needed for biological weapons programs.

But, he added, because of the nature of biological agents - - which are essentially indistinguishable from those used for medical and pharmaceutical purposes -- international inspections of national facilities would not be useful in verifying compliance with the convention.

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He said the types of substances used for chemical weapons lend themselves to inspection and effective verification, whereas biological agents do not. The chemical weapons ban, currently under negotiation in the Geneva Conference on Disarmament, is expected to include a verification regime based on routine and challenge inspections of national chemical facilities, whether military or civilian.

Moodie also pointed to the successful U.S. experience under the ABM (Anti-Ballistic Missile) Treaty in securing the eventual dismantling of the illegal Krasnoyarsk radar site in the Soviet Union; the treaty contained no international verification regime.

"We had enough evidence gathered through a variety of ways that led us to conclude that the Soviet Union was in violation of the ABM treaty," he said, and "we continued to address the issue and raise the issue" until "the Soviet Union concluded that it had been in violation of the ABM treaty with the Krasnoyarsk radar and began to tear it down."

Moodie said the United States would be using a similar strategy to address the Soviet Union's biological weapons programs in violation of the convention, as well as the programs of other countries that are suspected of developing biological warfare capabilities. Apart from saying that about 10 countries are suspected of developing biological weapons, Moodie declined to name other countries or give any details of the Soviet Union's program. NNNN