The Chemical Weapons Taboo


Book Description

Richard M. Price asks why, among all the ominous technologies of weaponry throughout the history of warfare, chemical weapons carry a special moral stigma. Something more seems to be at work than the predictable resistance people have expressed to any new weaponry, from the crossbow to nuclear bombs. Perceptions of chemical warfare as particularly abhorrent have been successfully institutionalized in international proscriptions and, Price suggests, understanding the sources of this success might shed light on other efforts at arms control.To explore the origins and meaning of the chemical weapons taboo, Price presents a series of case studies from World War I through the Gulf War of 1990-1991. He traces the moral arguments against gas warfare from the Hague Conferences at the turn of the century through negotiations for the Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993. From the Italian invasion of Ethiopia to the war between Iran and Iraq, chemical weapons have been condemned as the "poor man's bomb." Drawing upon insights from Michel Foucault to explain the role of moral norms in an international arena rarely sensitive to such pressures, he focuses on the construction of and mutations in the refusal to condone chemical weapons.




The Chemical Weapons Convention


Book Description

The most complex and comprehensive disarmament treaty ever to be adopted, the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) is intended to provide robust assurance that chemical weapons will not be developed, produced, stockpiled, used or transferred. To implement and enforce the CWC and verify the ongoing elimination of declared chemical weapons production capacity and stockpiles, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) inspects military and industrial sites in dozens of countries. OPCW membership now embraces over 95 percent of the world's population and 98 percent of the relevant global chemical industry. This book provides an in-depth explanation of the notable achievements of the CWC in a relatively short span since 1997, and examines the issues that must be addressed to ensure the regime's continuing vitality in the context of dynamic changes in the security environment, and in science, industry and technology. Featuring contributions from government and OPCW officials and experts in international law, industry, government and media, this volume highlights the challenges in implementation and assesses and recommends the means necessary to preserve the global ban on chemical weapons perpetually.




War of Nerves


Book Description

In this important and revelatory book, Jonathan Tucker, a leading expert on chemical and biological weapons, chronicles the lethal history of chemical warfare from World War I to the present. At the turn of the twentieth century, the rise of synthetic chemistry made the large-scale use of toxic chemicals on the battlefield both feasible and cheap. Tucker explores the long debate over the military utility and morality of chemical warfare, from the first chlorine gas attack at Ypres in 1915 to Hitler’s reluctance to use nerve agents (he believed, incorrectly, that the U.S. could retaliate in kind) to Saddam Hussein’s gassing of his own people, and concludes with the emergent threat of chemical terrorism. Moving beyond history to the twenty-first century, War of Nerves makes clear that we are at a crossroads that could lead either to the further spread of these weapons or to their ultimate abolition.




The Chemical Weapons Convention


Book Description

The Chemical Weapons Convention is one of the cornerstone disarmament and arms control agreements, and the only global and comprehensive disarmament treaty that is being verified by an international agency. This Commentary assesses the provisions of the Convention and its implementation, with cross-cutting chapters providing a broader analysis.




The Challenge of Old Chemical Munitions and Toxic Armament Wastes


Book Description

In October 1993, eighteen experts from ten countries met in Munster, Germany to discuss various aspects of the problem of old chemical munitions and toxic armaments wastes. This comprehensive study discusses the characteristics of chemical warfare agents and toxic armament wastes, past chemical weapons production activities, chemical weapons disposal and destruction, sea dumping of chemical weapons, and legal issues related to old chemical munitions and toxic armament wastes.




One Hundred Years of Chemical Warfare: Research, Deployment, Consequences


Book Description

This book is open access under a CC BY-NC 2.5 license. On April 22, 1915, the German military released 150 tons of chlorine gas at Ypres, Belgium. Carried by a long-awaited wind, the chlorine cloud passed within a few minutes through the British and French trenches, leaving behind at least 1,000 dead and 4,000 injured. This chemical attack, which amounted to the first use of a weapon of mass destruction, marks a turning point in world history. The preparation as well as the execution of the gas attack was orchestrated by Fritz Haber, the director of the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute for Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry in Berlin-Dahlem. During World War I, Haber transformed his research institute into a center for the development of chemical weapons (and of the means of protection against them). Bretislav Friedrich and Martin Wolf (Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, the successor institution of Haber’s institute) together with Dieter Hoffmann, Jürgen Renn, and Florian Schmaltz (Max Planck Institute for the History of Science) organized an international symposium to commemorate the centenary of the infamous chemical attack. The symposium examined crucial facets of chemical warfare from the first research on and deployment of chemical weapons in WWI to the development and use of chemical warfare during the century hence. The focus was on scientific, ethical, legal, and political issues of chemical weapons research and deployment — including the issue of dual use — as well as the ongoing effort to control the possession of chemical weapons and to ultimately achieve their elimination. The volume consists of papers presented at the symposium and supplemented by additional articles that together cover key aspects of chemical warfare from 22 April 1915 until the summer of 2015.




Challenge of Chemical Weapons


Book Description

This book traces through a 100+ year history of evolving chemical weapons technology, public attitudes toward these weapons, attempts to negotiate controls on them, and important instances in which nations chose to use or forego the use of chemical weapons.




A History of Chemical Warfare


Book Description

This book provides an analysis of the development and deployment of chemical weapons from 700BC to the present day. The First World War is examined in detail since it remains the most significant experience of the chemical threat, but the Second World War, and post-war conflicts are also evaluated. Additionally, protocols attempting to control the proliferation and use of chemical weapons are assessed. Finally, the book examines the threat (real and imagined) from a chemical warfare attack today by rationally assessing to what extent terrorist groups around the world are capable of making and using such weapons.




Chemical and Biological Terrorism


Book Description

The threat of domestic terrorism today looms larger than ever. Bombings at the World Trade Center and Oklahoma City's Federal Building, as well as nerve gas attacks in Japan, have made it tragically obvious that American civilians must be ready for terrorist attacks. What do we need to know to help emergency and medical personnel prepare for these attacks? Chemical and Biological Terrorism identifies the R&D efforts needed to implement recommendations in key areas: pre-incident intelligence, detection and identification of chemical and biological agents, protective clothing and equipment, early recognition that a population has been covertly exposed to a pathogen, mass casualty decontamination and triage, use of vaccines and pharmaceuticals, and the psychological effects of terror. Specific objectives for computer software development are also identified. The book addresses the differences between a biological and chemical attack, the distinct challenges to the military and civilian medical communities, and other broader issues. This book will be of critical interest to anyone involved in civilian preparedness for terrorist attack: planners, administrators, responders, medical professionals, public health and emergency personnel, and technology designers and engineers.




Chemical Weapons


Book Description

This book, first published in 1980, presents the findings of the SIPRI-organized 1979 international symposium on the destruction and conversion of chemical weapons. Thirty experts from 14 countries discussed the destruction and conversion of present stockpiles of chemical warfare agents and munitions; the destruction and conversion of CW research and development facilities; verification of compliance, and confidence-building measures facilitating verification; and the environmental and occupational health hazards involved in maintaining and in disposing of stockpiles of CW agents and munitions.