The Worldwide Effort to Ban Chemical Weapons: A Step Towards Modernity

This paper discusses the development, stockpiling and use of chemical weapons, as well as the efforts that have been made internationally in limiting and preventing the use of such dangerous weapons. Chemical weapons by definition are different than biological and nuclear weapons in minor details such as a chemical weapon requires no explosion in order to take effect, but the term chemical weapons is used interchangeably to refer to all weapons that use chemicals and elements in order to inflict damage. Chemical weapons, originating in the early 20th century have been immediately recognized for their danger to public health and well-being. Whereas control initiatives have clearly failed in the past, this paper argues that modern information technology puts the world in a much better position today to regulate such complex international issues and promote further security, growth, and prosperity for countries and their people’s around the world.

In nature, only certain types of metallic elements are naturally occurring. It is only after the human species advance sand develops that they begin blacksmithing specific blends of metal. With the introduction of gunpowder, the world would be severely altered from its natural level. As conflicts become larger and killing people one at a time is no longer efficient, weapons are introduced that contain poisonous and damaging chemicals to physiologically harm the target. The first large scale use of chemical weapons of mass destruction was during World War I between 1914-1918. Weapons containing elements such as chlorine, phosgene and the deadly combination known as “mustard” were produced and deployed to be used in the battle against enemy lines during the trench warfare of the time period (Fitzgerald, 2008). After an animalistic, barbaric and uncivilized war, countries experiencing the damages from these chemical weapons were quick to condemn and ban such tactics. Nonetheless, chemical weapons became nuclear weapons as the world was introduced to the devastating impact of an atomic explosion with Hiroshima and Nagasaki Japan as the first live test subjects at the conclusion of World War II. Since the conclusion of the two world wars, efforts have been made by intergovernmental organizations and global governance to limit the use of chemical, biological and atomic weaponry because of the damage they cause to the population as a whole. Despite the measure, the use of chemical warfare still takes place when a national power is in desperate need. This shows international law is currently weak as it is and more measures need to be taken to ensure global security and equality. 

Global governance began with the League of Nations at the conclusion of WWI, but quickly failed and fell apart as WWII conclusively proves so. The public, outraged at the damage caused through the use of chemical weapons. The public grievances resulted in what is known as the Geneva Protocol (1925), which prohibits the use of any chemical weaponry during warfare. But historical analysis shows governments are not likely to listen and act upon the well being of their population, but rather in their own self-interests to remain in power. Ironically enough, the Geneva Protocol prohibited the use of chemical weapons during warfare but did not prevent the development, production and stockpiling of such a damaging weapons arsenal (UNODA, 2013). Logically, why would a product be produced in mass if there were no intent for its use? As it can clearly be seen, this first international effort to control chemical weaponry after WWI was a failure, partly due to the ambiguous use of language in the agreement. With each country having its own sovereignty, it is difficult to think how a single entity or organization affect or stop the decisions of national government elites, especially in countries known as great powers. In her book Success and Failure in Arms Control Negotiations, April Carter notes several barriers to arms control agreements such as ideology, political and military obstacles, psychological factors and the momentum of weapon technology advancement (Carter, 1989). The failure of the Geneva Protocol failure would be the leading failures of international control on chemical weapons as seen by WWII and the Cold War.

Noting the failure of chemical weapon control initiatives, the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) was adopted by the Conference of Disarmament in Geneva in 1992. Aware of the failure of past protocols to enforce, the CWC provides stringent guidelines for compliance of member signatories. With this motive to create enforcement and accountability, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) was established to coordinate the logistics of fulfilling the objectives of the convention. Fully established and actionable as of April 29, 1997, the OPCW consisted of 188 member nations all making an effort to prevent the stockpiling and use of chemical weapons. A few years later the OPCW entered a relationship agreement with the United Nations in 2001, allowing the two organizations to analyze the factors in international relations and work together to achieve their mutual objectives. OPCW, headquartered in the Hague, the Netherlands, it has to take on the complex task of regulating the actions of national governments around the world. Naturally, signatory countries have to comply with the OPCW inspections and procedures. But, as national powers typically do not go out of their way to devalue their sovereignty, it can be expected that weapons could be cleverly hidden from the OPCW and other international inspecting agents. After all, how can an inspecting agent realize an undercover cookie factory, for example, was, in fact, a chemical weapons manufacturing company with a complex system of secret rooms and underground tunnels. While there are probably many regional offices, it has generally been unpractical for a weapons inspection team of the OPCW or other weapons monitoring agency to monitor every square inch of a sovereign nation’s territory. However, with modern technologies such as satellite imaging and real-time audio and visual streaming, monitoring every square inch of the globe can be described as much more practical.

The age of chemical, nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction come before the age of the Internet and information. Therefore, the unrealistic expectations of international regulation on chemical and nuclear weapons of mass destruction are much more practical and applicable. Satellite technology mixed with infrared and other methods of imaging can show irregular activity taking place underneath a factory, for example, and immediately raise an inquiry. Another significant factor affecting the enforceability of weapon control initiatives and the effectiveness of weapons inspection teams is the idea that these agencies are no longer unprecedented. Today, international organizations like the United Nations, OPCW, and the International Atomic Energy Association have been around long enough to establish some type of precedent and procedural routine such as annual and random inspections. Whereas a global society just finishing a devastating world war may be reluctant to release some of its sovereignty to an organization out of its control, an increasingly globalizing and developing world like today provides a much less hostile environment for countries to consider compliance. Once countries have adopted an agreement, how the first precedent is set is extremely important. Whereas the loosely binding Geneva Protocol hardly had an effect on the nations it tried to limit, a stringently set protocol like the one created in the CWC, backed with even as little as 10 years of precedent, can create an international regime of compliance and enforcement. Exemplification of this is with the recent success of the OPCW in destroying the stockpiles of chemical weapons in Libya as recent of May 4, 2013. The OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Ahmet Üzümcü, announced the removal as a destruction milestone (OPCW, 2013). This case sets a precedent for the OPCW as an effective enforcer of dangerous chemical weapon removal. Whereas international agreements and treaties declaring the use of such chemical, biological and nuclear weaponry have been ineffective in the past, the age of information and modern technology has made for the managing of such a complex task much more realistic and applicable. The result is a safer world for people.

Steel and weaponry do not naturally exist in nature. It is only with the advancement of humans and the development of societies and countries that the need for weapons leads to their development. A simple spear evolved into a metal gun, which evolved into chemical gas release devises biologically engineered to destroy a human’s circulatory and respiratory systems. Realizing the horrors of such tactics, efforts were made immediately after WWI to prevent the continuance of such damaging behavior. Due to the lack of trust and accountability of the time, such measures were unable to be enforced. After another horrific world war and the further stockpiling of weapons during the Cold War, the world became increasingly interconnected through information technology and economic interdependence through globalization. The result is a global incentive for a safer world in order to promote further growth and prosperity. This incentive has led to the creation of effective weapons enforcement agencies like the OPCW and IAEA. All in all, it can be said that our world is safer today than it has ever been.

References

Carter, April. Success and Failure in Arms Control Negotiations. Oxford [England: Oxford UP, 1989. Print.

Fitzgerald, Gerard J. "Chemical Warfare and Medical Response During World War I." National Center for Biotechnology Information. U.S. National Library of Medicine, Apr. 2008. Web. 30 May 2013. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2376985/>.

OPCW. "Libya Completes Destruction of Its Bulk Sulfur Mustard Stockpile." OPCW - News. Organisation For The Prohibition Of Chemical Weapons, 6 May 2013. Web. 30 May 2013. <http://www.opcw.org/news/article/libya-completes-destruction-of-its-bulk-sulfur-mustard-stockpile/>.

"UNODA - Chemical Weapons." UN News Center. United Nations, n.d. Web. 30 May 2013. <http://www.un.org/disarmament/WMD/Chemical/>.