16.07.04

BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION MEMBERS TO MEET IN GENEVA FROM 19 TO 30 JULY 2004
Experts to Discuss Ways of Strengthening National and International Measures against Infectious and Deliberate Diseases

The second Meeting of Experts from States Parties to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on their Destruction will be held in Geneva from 19 to 30 July 2004. The Convention, generally known as the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC), prohibits the development, production and stockpiling of biological and toxin weapons.

The Meeting of Experts is part of a three-year programme mandated by the Fifth Review Conference of the BWC. The Review Conference, which concluded in 2002, decided that States Parties would meet twice yearly until the next Review Conference in 2006 "to discuss, and promote common understanding and effective action on" specific topics related to better implementation of the BWC.

The 2004 Meeting of Experts follows the successful conclusion of similar sessions held in 2003, which saw a wide range of technical experts assemble to discuss practical ways of strengthening national measures against biological weapons.

This second Meeting of Experts will address two specific topics: strengthening and broadening national and international institutional efforts and existing mechanisms for the surveillance, detection, diagnosis and combating of infectious diseases affecting humans, animals, and plants (to be covered in the first week, 19 – 23 July); and enhancing international capabilities for responding to, investigating and mitigating the effects of cases of alleged use of biological or toxin weapons or suspicious outbreaks of disease (to be covered in the second week, 26 – 30 July).

The experts are expected to discuss technical aspects of national and international measures to prevent and combat infective and deliberate disease, and will prepare the ground for the annual meeting of States Parties, scheduled for 6-10 December. As well as national delegations, experts from a range of international organizations, including the World Health Organization (WHO), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), will participate. These three organizations are working to assist their Member States develop national contingency plans for responding rapidly to outbreaks of infectious disease, and this Meeting of Experts will provide an opportunity to discuss how possible responses to an alleged or confirmed deliberate release of disease might be integrated into these plans.

Moreover, this Meeting is being held amidst growing international concerns that not enough is being done to prevent and control the spread of preventable infectious disease; for many States Parties and participating international organizations, the prospect of a deliberate biological or toxin attack adds an additional dimension to the already complex public health, economic and security problems posed by infectious diseases. The potential for infectious diseases to create massive disruption and have disastrous effects on trade, travel and essential services is not just a probability. Recent lessons learnt from the SARS epidemic, and the spread of Avian Flu, and Foot and Mouth Disease demonstrate that efficient and effective systems for disease surveillance and reporting are vital for the detection and control of new, emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases. Such systems are equally necessary for the early detection of the possible use of biological weapons, and the 2004 Meeting of Experts will examine how BWC States Parties can contribute to developing and strengthening them.

The 2004 Meeting of Experts will be chaired by Mr. Peter Goosen of South Africa.

In 2005 the focus of the process will shift to the content, promulgation, and adoption of codes of conduct for scientists. States Parties to the BWC are due to meet in 2006 for the Sixth Review Conference to review the operation of the Convention, with a view to assuring that the provisions of the Convention are being properly and effectively implemented.

The Biological Weapons Convention, which opened for signature in 1972 and entered into force in 1975, is the first multilateral disarmament treaty banning an entire category of weapons. It currently has 151 States Parties, with a further 16 having signed but not yet ratified.

For further information, please contact:

Richard Lennane

Secretariat of the BWC Meeting of Experts

tel: +41 (0)22 917 1376 or +41 (0)22 917 7304

fax: +41 (0)22 917 0034

e-mail: rlennane@unog.ch

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