Although allegations have been leveled against Pakistan for conducting research into biological warfare since the early 1990s, Pakistan is not suspected of either producing or stockpiling biological weapons (BW).[1] However, it is generally believed that Pakistan has a well developed bio-technology sector that is capable of supporting limited biological warfare-related research and development.[2] In 1996, the U.S. Department of Defense stated that Pakistan "had the resources and capabilities appropriate to conducting research and development relating to biological warfare," and "was conducting research and development with potential biological warfare applications."[3] But the U.S. government has not presented any evidence to corroborate its assertions.
The Pakistani government insists that it has never developed, produced, or stockpiled biological weapons or agents and that a bio-warfare program is not part of the country's defense matrix. Pakistan signed the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) in 1972, which it ratified in 1974.[4] Since then, Pakistan has remained a vocal advocate for the success of the BTWC. During the various Review Conferences of the BTWC, Pakistani representatives have urged more robust participation from state signatories, invited new states to join the treaty, and as part of the non-aligned group of countries have made the case for guarantees for states' rights to engage in peaceful exchange of biological and toxin materials for purposes of scientific research.[5]
In the wake of Pakistan's May 1998 nuclear tests, the U.S. Department of Commerce imposed sanctions on a large number of government, quasi-government, and private sector entities suspected of participating in Pakistan's nuclear weapons and nuclear weapons-related delivery programs. In the process, the U.S. government also imposed sanctions on chemical and biological facilities on suspicion that they might be involved with chemical and bio-warfare programs. These four entities were: The Center for Advanced Molecular Biology, Lahore; Karachi CBW Research Institute; Karachi CW & BW Warfare R&D Laboratory; and the National Institute of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Faisalabad.[6] Despite being sanctioned, there is no independent evidence to suggest that any of the above four institutes were or are engaged in offensive biological warfare programs.
Key Sources:
[1] Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction: Assessing the Risks, Office of Technology Assessment
website, August 1993, archived at http://www.wws.princeton.edu/~ota/ns20/alpha_f.html
Proliferation Threat and Response, Office of the Secretary of Defense website, January 2001,
http://www.fpc.state.gov/c4729.htm.
[2] Proliferation Threat and Response, January 2001.
[3] Biological Weapons Proliferation, Canadian Security Intelligence Service, June 200, http://www.csis-scrs.gc.ca/eng/miscdocs/200005_e.html
[4]"Status of Multilateral Arms Regulation and Disarmament Agreements," United Nations Institute for Disarmament website, http://disarmament2.un.org/treatyStatus.nsf.
[5] Rissanen, Jenni, Left in Limbo: Review Conference Suspended on Edge of Collapse, The
Acronym Institute website, February 2002, http://www.acronym.org.uk/dd/dd62/62bwc.htm.
[6] "Rules and Regulations", Federal Register website, 19 November 1998, v. 63, 223.
http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=
1998_register&docid=fr19no98-18.pdf.
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Updated September 2006 |
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