Suchergebnisse

Traces the history of biological warfare from ancient practices to the present time. The use of germ warfare by Germany during WWI led to the 1925 Geneva Protocol forbidding the use of bacteriological agents in warfare. However, the failure to ban research resulted in the deaths of thousands of experimental subjects in places like Manchuria. Post-WWII research in the UK, US, & Soviet Union is described, along with the low cost & high destructive capacity of these weapons; advent of the Biological Weapons Convention; & the suspected continuance of biological warfare research in Iraq, the People's Republic of China, India, Iran, Israel, both Koreas, Libya, & Pakistan. It is noted that recent developments in genetic engineering have made bio-organisms harder to identify & more resistant to common antibiotics. The emerging ability to design toxins, viruses, or bacteria that are more harmful to one ethnic group than another reveals the ominous possibility of biological warfare directed at specific groups. The need for the US to lead in accepting new verification protocols of the Biological Weapons Convention is emphasized. J. Lindroth

THE 1925 GENEVA PROTOCOL AND THE 1972 CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL AND TOXIN WEAPONS ARE THE TWO MAIN SAFEGUARDS AGAINST ANY GOVERNMENT RESORTING TO BIOLOGICAL WAREFARE. THE PURPOSE OF THIS PAPER IS TO EXAMINE THE MORAL STATUS OF BIOLOGICAL WARFARE, THE REASONS WHY IT HAS BEEN PERCEIVED AS IMMORAL, AND SOME OF THE CONSEQUENCES OF THAT PERCEPTION. QUESTIONS OF MORALITY IN GENERAL AS WELL AS INTERNATIONAL LAW AND TREATY HISTORY ARE ALSO EXAMINED.

"The international community has pledged to curtail development and use of chemical and biological weapons (CBW) in several agreements, beginning with the 1925 Geneva Protocol, but several nations are not honoring these pacts. Critics argue that CBW are crueler than traditional warfare methods and that they harm innocent civilians. But some experts say that CBW are less of a threat when compared to nuclear weapons. The authors of the viewpoints in this informative resource examine the use and efficacy of chemical and biological weapons, address who is using them, and suggest ways to prevent their use."--Provided by publisher

Until now little attention has been paid to the development of military capabilities designed to target food crops with biological warfare agents. This book represents the first substantive study of state-run activities in this field. It shows that all biological warfare programmes have included a component concerned with the development of anti-crop biological warfare agents and munitions. Current concern over the proliferation of biological weapons is placed in the context of the initiative to strengthen the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention. The book concludes by arguing that the risks posed by this form of warfare can be minimised, but that this would depend largely on the effective and efficient implementation of regimes concerning the peaceful use and control of plant pathogens that pose a risk to human health and the environment.