This paper examines four areas of interest:
- What was learned in recent years regarding the BW program of the former USSR, and now Russia, and its present status;
- Proliferation of BW: reviews of the state of public knowledge regarding those countries known or strongly suspected of having BW programs;
- Developments in BW arms control since 1975, and particularly in the last six years;
- Some discussion of the problems of verification of BW arms control.
In the proliferation section, the disclosures since 1990-1991 and the Gulf War regarding Iraq’s BW program are treated in the greatest detail. The proliferation section also includes a discussion of the potential use of biological weapons by extra-national or “terrorist” groups.