Preparations under way for 2011 review of biological weapons treaty
Representatives of 90 states meet in Vienna as part of an effort to bridge differences among countries about the best way to bolster the Biological Weapons Convention
The first of a series of meetings in preparation for the 2011 review conference of the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) produced no concrete results, but participants said it was productive for its positive atmosphere. Experts and diplomats from 90 BWC states-parties, and representatives from a range of international organizations, met in Geneva on 20-24 August to discuss ways and means to enhance national implementation of the biological weapons prohibition, including law enforcement, and measures to improve regional and subregional cooperation on BWC implementation. Oliver Meier reports that the meeting was the first in a series of gatherings agreed to at the last review conference in 2006. The meeting took place against the background of lingering differences about how much attention to spend on the threat from bioterrorism. It also remains unclear whether a follow-up meeting of BWC states-parties in December will be able to decide on specific measures to improve implementation of the biological weapons ban.
