GENEVA, Sept. 26 ‘Reuter: The United States, the Soviet Union and 101 other nations agreed today to strengthen a 1972 treaty which bans germ warfare weapons, giving a fillip to international arms control efforts, delegates said.
The three week treaty review conference adopted unanimously 4 final declaration agreeing new measures to enhance compliance and ensure no party cheats on the accord.
The United States has repeatedly accused Moscow of cheating and refusing to cooperate in investigations of suspicious activities. The Soviet Union rejects the charges.
The treaty bans development, production or stockpiling of biological or toxin weapons, These can cause disease such as plague, yellow fever, botulism, dengue fever, smallpox or typhus.
Conference President Winfried Lang of Austria said, “There is an increasing conviction that biological arms have gained in importance, particularly due to rapid development in such areas as genetic engineering and microbiology”.
The final declaration agreed a series of new measures to “strengthen the implementation and authority of the convention … and enhance confidence in implementation of provisions”.
Article extracted from this publication >> October 3, 1986
