THE US has rejected plans to enforce the 30-year-old treaty banning
biological weapons. Last week in Geneva, American negotiators said they do not
support the idea of declaration and inspection because it would not help catch
the cheaters.
The other 52 nations that are party to the 1972 Biological Weapons Convention
were meeting this week in a last-ditch attempt to save the protocol. As New
Scientist went to press it was unclear if the American move would effectively
scupper the protocol, or whether the other nations would “do a Kyoto” and go
ahead without the US.
The protocol calls for…
