Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)


2004 United States Special Weapons News

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

    December

  • United States Implements Australia Group Understandings Washington File 29 Dec 2004 -- The U.S. government has amended its export regulations to comply with an Australia Group agreement intended to prevent groups or other states from acquiring a biochemical weapons capability.
  • State Department Outlines Proliferation Security Initiative Washington File 29 Dec 2004 -- The U.S. Department of State released December 27 a fact sheet on the Proliferation Security Initiative(PSI).
  • Energy Agency Awards $21 Million for Nuclear Research Washington File 28 Dec 2004 -- The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced 35 research awards to U.S. universities totaling $21 million over three years to engage students and professors in nuclear energy research and development programs.
  • PROLIFERATION-PROGRAMS VOA 14 Dec 2004 -- At the dawn of the nuclear age, expertise in nuclear matters was limited to scientists of the two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union. Now nuclear arms technology is much more accessible to governments or, potentially, terrorist groups. That has greatly complicated efforts to halt the spread of nuclear weapons.
  • U.S., Spain Sign Pact to Prevent Trafficking of Nuclear Material Washington File 23 Dec 2004 -- The United States and Spain signed an agreement December 21 in Madrid to install special equipment at one of Spain's busiest seaports to detect and stop hidden shipments of nuclear and other radioactive materials.
  • Highly Enriched Uranium Repatriated from Czech Republic to Russia Washington File 23 Dec 2004 -- U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham announced December 22 that six kilograms of highly enriched uranium (HEU) that could be used for nuclear weapons have been safely returned to the Russian Federation from the Czech Republic.
  • Study Demonstrates Effect of Anthrax Vaccine Washington File 16 Dec 2004 -- Rapidly distributing antibiotics to people exposed to anthrax spores during a bioterrorist attack could prevent about 70 percent of anthrax infections, according to a December 15 press release from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
  • U.S. Energy Department Funds New Fusion Energy Experiment Washington File 07 Dec 2004 -- U.S. researchers have begun a novel experiment that will test whether nature's way of confining high-temperature gas might lead to a new source of energy for the world, according to a December 6 Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) press release.
  • Compliance, Verification, Enforcement Keys to Arms Control Success Washington File 01 Nov 2004 -- In order for arms control agreements to support the security of all nations, "all nations must actively work to promote compliance by all member states," says a State Department official.

    November

  • Course Trains 'Select Few' on Biological Warfare Agents AFPS 30 Nov 2004 -- The narrow gravel path leads to a cluster of mobile tactical shelters at Fort Detrick's "Area B," 400 acres of farmland on this Maryland base. A brown sign marks the Field Identification of Biological Warfare Agents, or FIBWA, Laboratory Training Site. Inside, the air conditioning is blasting while Top 40 music plays from a portable stereo atop a file cabinet. Two laboratories, each with four workstations, adjoin a central tactical shelter that serves as a conference room.
  • U.S. Hopes for Productive Meeting of Chemical Weapons Conference Washington File 30 Nov 2004 -- The U.S. goal for the Chemical Weapons Convention is "not just a convention that is universal, but a convention that is universally implemented," according to a U.S. ambassador.
  • U-S / BALLISTIC MISSILES VOA 29 Nov 2004 -- Secretary of State Colin Powell recently accused Iran of working on technology that would allow its ballistic missiles to carry nuclear warheads, a charge Tehran has denied. Experts in arms control and proliferation name Iran and North Korea as two countries that can produce missiles and sell the technology, therefore threatening their neighbors and other nations around the world.
  • U.S. Warns Verification Focus Would Delay Fissile Ban Treaty Washington File 01 Nov 2004 -- The Bush administration supports negotiating a treaty to ban production of fissile material for nuclear weapons, even though the United States believes such an agreement could not be effectively verified, according to the U.S. special representative for nuclear nonproliferation.

    October

  • Stopping the Spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction in the Asian-Pacific Region: The Role of the Proliferation Security Initiative US Dept. of State 27 Oct 2004 -- John R. Bolton, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, Tokyo American Center, Field Program Design
  • Anthrax Vaccination Program Paused 27 Oct 2004 -- The Department of Defense is currently reviewing a preliminary injunction issued today by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia regarding the department's anthrax vaccination program.
  • Verification, Compliance Vital to Arms Control Accords Washington File 26 Oct 2004 -- Verification and compliance are critical components in achieving success from arms control, nonproliferation and disarmament agreements, a senior State Department official says.
  • Last Peacekeeper class graduates AFPN 20 Oct 2004 -- The era of the Peacekeeper intercontinental ballistic missile is coming to a close as the last class of Peacekeeper operators graduated here Oct. 15. There will be no more Peacekeepers after September 2005.
  • Study Finds Little Risk From Depleted-Uranium Particles AFPS 19 Oct 2004 -- A new study finds the health risks from inhaling airborne particles of depleted uranium are very low.
  • Bolton Outlines Bush Administration's Nonproliferation Efforts Washington File 19 Oct 2004 -- The nonproliferation policy of the Bush administration is more properly described as counterproliferation, says John Bolton, the State Department's top arms control official.
  • United States Awards $4.9 Million for Pathogen Research Tool Washington File 12 Oct 2004 -- The U.S. Department of Defense has awarded $4.9 million for a project that is helping scientists amass and analyze information about disease organisms to more effectively fight infectious diseases, according to an October 11 press release from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech).
  • New Smallpox Study Uses Microarrays to Show Virus Workings Washington File 12 Oct 2004 -- Results of a new study in monkeys shed light on how the smallpox virus caused mass death and suffering throughout history and will help in the design of new diagnostics, vaccines and drugs that would be needed in the event of a smallpox bioterror incident, according to an October 12 National Institutes of Health (NIH) press release.
  • Energy Department Awards Subcontracts for Fusion Experiment Washington File 07 Oct 2004 -- The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) has awarded two subcontracts for fabrication of major components for the National Compact Stellarator Experiment (NCSX), now under construction at the laboratory, according to an October 6 PPPL press release.
  • DOD expands anthrax, smallpox vaccination programs AFPN 04 Oct 2004 -- Department of Defense is expanding its anthrax and smallpox immunization programs following an evaluation conducted by the Military Health System. Air Force officials released service-specific guidance recently.
  • DoD Hosts First Proliferation Security Initiative Maritime Interdiction Game 01 Oct 2004 -- The Department of Defense announced today that it welcomed operational experts from seventeen countries to the first Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) maritime interdiction game hosted by the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island September 27 through October 1.

    September

  • Energy Secretary Abraham Urges Greater Security for Nuclear Materials Washington File 20 Sep 2004 -- Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham called on members of the international community to accelerate collaboration to safeguard nuclear materials, so there are fewer opportunities for terrorists to acquire them.
  • U.S. Leads Efforts to Control High-Risk Radioactive Sources, Materials Washington File 16 Sep 2004 -- The United States leads efforts to strengthen controls over radioactive materials that could be used by terrorists to make radioactive "dirty bombs," according to the Department of State.
  • U.S., IAEA Program Promotes Nuclear Plant Safety Washington File 14 Sep 2004 -- Engineers at the U.S. Department of Energy Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL), along with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), have produced a computerized training program that could help prevent an accident like the 1986 disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, according to a September 13 INEEL press release.
  • State's Bolton Says U.S. Favors Treaty to Ban Fissile Materials Washington File 13 Sep 2004 -- The State Department's chief arms control official says international disarmament negotiators should keep working to develop a treaty to ban production of fissile materials for nuclear weapons, but that verification measures should not be included.
  • Bolton on an All-Out War on Proliferation Washington File 10 Sep 2004 -- This column by John Bolton, who is under secretary of state for Arms Control and International Security, appeared in The Financial Times on September 7 and is in the public domain.

    August

  • US rules out major reduction of European-based nuclear warheads IRNA 31 Aug 2004 -- The United States has no plans to substantially reduce its nuclear weapons arsenal in Europe, the American military daily Stars and Stripes reported Tuesday.
  • Rumsfeld Explains Problems in Stopping WMD Proliferation AFPS 18 Aug 2004 -- Working with other countries to stop weapons of mass destruction from spreading isn't as easy as it may sound, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld told the 7th annual Space and Missile Defense Conference here today.
  • U.S. Army Develops Vaccine Against Deadly Ricin Washington File 11 Aug 2004 -- Scientists at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) in Maryland have developed an experimental vaccine against ricin, a potential bioterrorism agent, that has protected mice sprayed with a mist containing lethal doses of the toxin.
  • Persistent Diplomacy Needed for Nonproliferation Advances Washington File 11 Aug 2004 -- Aggressive and persistent diplomacy is needed more than additional funding to expand the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction Program effectively, according to one of the program's authors.
  • Troops' Plasma Needed to Develop New Anthrax Defense AFPS 11 Aug 2004 -- A new program starting today to develop a new defense against anthrax will depend on servicemembers' donated plasma to be most effective.
  • DoD Assists CDC with Anthrax Plasma Project 11 Aug 2004 -- The Departments of Defense (DoD) and Health and Human Services (DHHS) today announced that the military will support a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) effort to create a new medication against anthrax. This new medication, anthrax immune globulin (AIG), is an antibody-based medication and could become a critical medical countermeasure for the nation in case of an anthrax attack.
  • Australia Group Combats Chemical, Biological Weapons Proliferation Washington File 10 Aug 2004 -- Following is a fact sheet from the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Nonproliferation on the Australia Group, which was created in 1984 to combat the proliferation of chemical and biological weapons.
  • Rice Cites Successes in Stopping Nuclear Arms Development AFPS 08 Aug 2004 -- National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice disputed news reports today that say U.S. diplomacy is failing in the effort to stop countries like Iran and North Korea from developing nuclear arms.

    July

  • The Proliferation Security Initiative: What Is the Proliferation Security Initiative? US Dept. of State 28 Jul 2004 -- The Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) is a global effort that aims to stop shipments of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), their delivery systems, and related materials worldwide. Announced by President Bush on May 31, 2003, it stems from the National Strategy to Combat Weapons of Mass Destruction issued in December 2002. That strategy recognizes the need for more robust tools to defeat the proliferation of WMD around the world, and specifically identifies interdiction as an area where greater focus will be placed.
  • New Law to Provide Medical Countermeasures Against WMD Attack Washington File 22 Jul 2004 -- Following is the text of the White House factsheet on Project BioShield -- an initiative to provide enhanced medical countermeasures for Americans in the event of terrorist attack using weapons of mass destruction -- that President Bush signed into law on July 21
  • Bush Signs $5.6 Billion BioShield Legislation AFPS 21 Jul 2004 -- President Bush today signed bipartisan legislation designed to make America safer in the face of a biological attack.
  • New Legislation Will Transform Bioterrorism Defense, Bush Says Washington File 21 Jul 2004 -- The Project BioShield Act "will help America purchase, develop and deploy cutting-edge defenses against catastrophic attack" and is a part of the "broader strategy" to protect the nation from attacks using weapons of mass destruction, said President Bush as he signed the legislation into law July 21.
  • President Bush Signs New Bioterror Law VOA News 21 Jul 2004 -- President Bush has signed into law new measures to better prevent and respond to potential biological, chemical, or nuclear attacks against the United States.
  • CHINA-U.S. WEAPONS VOA 20 Jul 2004 -- U.S. experts are calling on China to help prevent nuclear weapons from ending up in the hands of terrorists.
  • SECURITY / LOS ALAMOS LAB VOA 16 Jul 2004 -- For the first time in recent memory, the Los Alamos lab has temporarily stopped all classified research work. This results from the discovery last week that vital data on two media storage disks are missing.

    June

  • Transcript: Expansion of the Anthrax and Smallpox Immunization Programs for DoD Personnel 30 Jun 2004 -- William Winkenwerder Jr., Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs; Brigadier General David Rodriguez, Deputy Director for Operations, J-3, Joint Staff; Bryan Whitman, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs
  • DoD Expands Troop Anthrax, Smallpox Vaccinations AFPS 30 Jun 2004 -- More U.S. service members -– including those serving in South Korea -- will be vaccinated against smallpox and anthrax, the Defense Department's senior medical adviser said today.
  • Anthrax, Smallpox Protection Policies Updated 30 Jun 2004 -- William Winkenwerder, Jr., MD, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, today announced that the anthrax and smallpox vaccination programs would include selected units within the U. S. Pacific Command, additional personnel now serving with the U.S. Central Command and selected other groups of individuals.
  • NATO Communique Supports PSI, Other Nonproliferation Regimes Washington File 29 Jun 2004 -- The year-old Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) was among the nonproliferation measures commended by NATO members at the conclusion of a two-day summit.
  • New Nonproliferation Initiatives Producing Results, Bolton Says Washington File 25 Jun 2004 -- A robust use of the sovereign authorities available to the United States and its allies to curb proliferation of weapons of mass production is bringing about real results, the State Department's senior arms control official said June 24.
  • World: New Study Raises Questions About Nuclear Safety RFE/RL 22 Jun 2004 -- The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace today concludes a two-day conference in Washington on the dangers of nuclear proliferation. The private nonprofit organization released a study yesterday raising questions about whether the world is any safer from nuclear attacks by rogue nations or terrorists.

    May

  • Bolton Tells Senators G8 Summit Advanced Anti-WMD Agenda Washington File 15 Jun 2004 -- State Department official John Bolton reported to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee June 15 that the recent meeting of the Group of Eight (G8) endorsed five Bush administration proposals to combat the spread of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and the means to deliver them.
  • G8 Issues Action Plan on Global Nonproliferation Washington File 09 Jun 2004 -- Leaders of the Group of Eight (G8) countries have strongly urged North Korea to dismantle its nuclear weapons-related programs "in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner."
  • Nonproliferation Action Plan Approved by G8 Washington File 09 Jun 2004 -- The Group of Eight (G8) countries adopted an action plan June 9 to counter the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) by increasing controls over relevant materials and technologies, dismantling proliferation networks, and expanding the global partnership against the spread of WMD.
  • U.S. Notes First Anniversary of Proliferation Security Initiative Washington File 01 Jun 2004 -- More than 60 nations have joined with the United States in the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) to combat the trade in weapons of mass destruction, the White House announced June 1.
  • U.S. Wants to Intensify Global Nuclear Security Efforts Washington File 26 May 2004 -- U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham has announced a global initiative to intensify and accelerate efforts aimed at preventing high-risk nuclear and radiological materials from falling into the hands of terrorists or rogue states.
  • US / NUCLEAR SECURITY VOA 26 May 2004 -- The United States Wednesday announced a new global program to remove high risk nuclear materials from reactors that could pose a threat to the international community. The United States will be working with Russia and the International Atomic Energy Agency on this program.
  • Army Dedicates New Chemical Weapons Destruction Facility AFPS 20 May 2004 -- The U.S. Army Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Program dedicated its newest capability and first fixed facility to treat recovered chemical weapons during a ceremony at the Edgewood Area here May 5.
  • Export Controls Aimed at China Facing Administration Opposition Washington File 20 May 2004 -- The Bush administration is likely to oppose a provision in a House of Representatives defense bill for tightening export controls in order to prevent increased arms trade with China, a Department of Commerce official says.
  • IAEA / US VOA 15 May 2004 -- The International Atomic Energy Agency says U-S Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham will visit its Vienna headquarters later this month to launch a new initiative on nuclear non-proliferation.
  • U-S / NUCLEAR SECURITY VOA 12 May 2004 -- The U-S Department of Energy is taking steps to improve security at its nuclear weapons plants and research facilities in the United States because of concern that terrorists could try to steal such weapons and explode them. Critics of the department, however, say its is moving too slowly to protect its installations and that a successful terrorist attack on a site containing nuclear bombs or the materials to make them would have devastating consequences.
  • U.S., Panama to Sign New Reciprocal Accord on Inspecting Ships Washington File 11 May 2004 -- The United States and Panama will sign a new reciprocal agreement May 12 at the U.S. State Department in Washington, regarding the checking of ships for weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
  • Kerry Campaign Statement on Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham’s Nuclear Security Speech John Kerry for President 07 May 2004 -- More than two and a half years after the 9/11 attacks, the Energy Department is finally getting around to taking steps to protect nuclear facilities. It is acting only after the GAO reports that the Energy Department has failed to secure nuclear weapons facilities, and American chemical plants remain vulnerable to attack.
  • NPT Articles III and VII: IAEA Safeguards, Nuclear Export Controls and Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zones US Dept. of State 04 May 2004 -- Andrew K. Semmel, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Nonproliferation, Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2005 Review Conference of The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons
  • NPT: Regional Issues US Dept. of State 04 May 2004 -- John S. Wolf, Assistant Secretary for Nonproliferation, Alternate Representative of the United States of America, Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2005 Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons
  • Safe and Secure Peaceful Nuclear Programs US Dept. of State 04 May 2004 -- Ambassador Jackie W. Sanders, Special Representative of the President of the U.S. for the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2005 Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons
  • NPT Article VI US Dept. of State 03 May 2004 -- Stephen G. Rademaker, Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control, Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2005 Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons

    April

  • NPT Articles I and II US Dept. of State 30 Apr 2004 -- John S. Wolf, Assistant Secretary for Nonproliferation, Alternate Representative of the United States of America, Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2005 Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons
  • NPT Article IV US Dept. of State 29 Apr 2004 -- Ambassador Jackie W. Sanders, Special Representative of the President of the U.S. for the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2005 Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons
  • The NPT: A Crisis of Non-Compliance Dept. of State 27 Apr 2004 -- John R. Bolton, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security Statement to the Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2005 Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons
  • U.S. Hails U.N. Resolution on Anti-Proliferation Washington File 28 Apr 2004 -- By adopting a resolution on weapons of mass destruction, the U.N. Security Council is responding appropriately to what all agree is a clear and present threat to global peace and security: the spread to terrorists and black marketeers of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and their means of delivery, U.S. Ambassador James Cunningham said April 28.
  • U-N / U-S / NON-PROLIFERATION VOA 27 Apr 2004 -- At a United Nations conference reviewing the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (N-P-T) Tuesday, the United States said loopholes in the treaty are creating a crisis. A U-S official told the conference at least four N-P-T member states have used the treaty as a cover for their efforts to develop nuclear weapons.
  • U.S. Seeks Better Enforcement of Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Washington File 27 Apr 2004 -- Emphasizing that there is a "crisis of noncompliance" with the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), U.S. Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security John Bolton said April 27 that the treaty's members "must resolve to deal firmly and swiftly with countries whose nuclear programs pose a serious threat" to the NPT regime.
  • Exercise Clever Sentinel Ends with Major Operation Navy Newsstand 23 Apr 2004-- The Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) multilateral maritime interdiction training exercise, Clever Sentinel 2004, kicked off April 19, and ended with a major operation that simulated the interception of a ship carrying weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Sicily, April 22.
  • U.S. Urges Adoption of Resolution on Weapons of Mass Destruction Washington File 23 Apr 2004 -- The U.S.-sponsored draft resolution on weapons of mass destruction (WMD) is the quickest way to stem the threat that terrorist groups will acquire the deadly weapons, U.S. Ambassador James Cunningham said April 22.
  • LUGAR / NUCLEAR TERRORISM VOA 06 Apr 2004 -- In focus today, nuclear proliferation -- It's the main issue in the second part of my interview with Senator Richard Lugar -- a Republican from Indiana -- and the widely respected Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations committee. I asked Senator Lugar about concerns over nuclear weapons programs in Iran, North Korea, and now Brazil.
  • U.S. Destroys More of Its Chemical Agent Stockpile AFPS 02 Apr 2004 -- The United States continues to whittle down its stockpile of chemical weapons as part of fulfillment of an international treaty, U.S. officials told the House Subcommittee on Terrorism, Unconventional Threats and Capabilities April 1.
  • White House, State Welcome Senate Action on Safeguards Protocol Washington FIle 01 Apr 2004 -- The White House and the State Department issued statements April 1 welcoming Senate action providing its advice and consent to the Additional Protocol between the United States and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) regarding nuclear safeguards.

    March

  • Rep. Tom Lantos on Halting the Nuclear Black Market Washington File 30 Mar 2004 -- This column by Representative Tom Lantos, who is the ranking Democrat on the House International Relations Committee, was published in the San Francisco Chronicle March 30 and is in the public domain. No republication restrictions
  • Minuteman ICBMs Soldier on As Peacekeepers Get Mothballed AFPS 26 Mar 2004 -- The U.S. military will upgrade its Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles while retiring its Peacekeeper missile force, a senior officer told a Senate subcommittee March 25.
  • Critical Challenges Seen for Nuclear Non-Proliferation Regime Washington File 25 Mar 2004 -- A U.S. arms control official says the nuclear non-proliferation regime faces critical challenges from countries such as Iran and North Korea, but Libya's recent decision to come into compliance with the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) by giving up its nuclear weapons program "significantly advances" NPT goals.
  • UN/NON-PROLIFERATION VOA 24 Mar 2004 -- The United States has introduced a draft U-N Security Council resolution aimed at halting the spread of weapons of mass destruction to terrorists. The resolution attempts to close a loophole in current non-proliferation treaties, which affect only nations.
  • U.S. Seeking U.N. Action to Keep WMD From Terrorists Washington File 24 Mar 2004 -- The United States presented a draft resolution to the U.N. Security Council March 24 that attempts to fill a major gap in the current non-proliferation regimes by preventing chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons from falling into the hands of non-state actors, especially terrorist groups.
  • ICBM security forces deploy every four days AFPN 23 Mar 2004-- Security forces Airmen here and at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyo., and Malmstrom AFB, Mont., constantly deploy but not overseas. Their deployments are to the nation's IBM fields. These Airmen provide security for the U.S. ICBM arsenal around the clock, 365 days a year.
  • Missile support teams deploy, but closer to home AFPN 23 Mar 2004-- Those assigned to care for missile alert facilities and launch facilities containing Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles do not deploy to forward areas overseas. Instead, they deploy to areas in the central and north central United States.
  • DoD Continues Efforts To Reduce WMD Proliferation Threat AFPS 16 Mar 2004 -- The Defense Department continues to work with Russia, former Soviet states, and other countries to prevent the proliferation of deadly weapons of mass destruction and to keep them out of terrorists' hands, a senior DoD official told a Senate Armed Services Committee panel last week.
  • US to reduce nuclear arsenal in Europe: German weekly PLA Daily 15 Mar 2004 -- The United States is planning to reduce its existing nuclear arsenal in Europe, according to the latest issue of the German weekly Der Spiegel.
  • U.S. Says Export Controls Need Not Block Technology Transfer Washington File 09 Mar 2004 -- Export controls on missile technology unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) should not prevent the United States from providing appropriate weapon systems to allies and friends, a Department of State official says.
  • Citizen Group Releases First Installment of Detailed Los Alamos Contamination Maps, Data for Public Use Los Alamos Study Group 04 Mar 2004 -- Today the Los Alamos Study Group released a set of maps and tables helpful to citizens who wish to better understand the land contamination at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL).
  • MALAYSIA / U-S NUCLEAR VOA 02 Mar 2004 -- The United States is urging Malaysia to tighten controls against the trade in nuclear technology. The call from a visiting U-S envoy, follows the disclosure that a Malaysian firm produced nuclear technology bound for Libya.

    February

  • Spread of WMD Called Threat to Interests of All Washington File 26 Feb 2004 -- Ambassador Jackie Wolcott Sanders, the U.S. Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament (CD), has urged CD member states to work together to halt the spread of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and related technologies.
  • World: A Lively Nuclear Black Market Raises Fears Of Terrorists Getting The Bomb (Part 1) RFE/RL 26 Feb 2004 -- World: A Lively Nuclear Black Market Raises Fears Of Terrorists Getting The Bomb (Part 1)
  • World: Stopping Proliferation Requires Tough New Laws (Part 2) RFE/RL 26 Feb 2004 -- New revelations regarding the extent of the global black market in nuclear technology are raising concerns that international terrorist groups could have greater access to such materials than previously thought.
  • BusH NON-PROLIFERATION SPEECH: INTERNATIONAL ACTION IS 'BADLY NEEDED' US Dept. of State IIP, Foreign Media Reaction 23 Feb 2004
  • Stopping Nuclear Proliferation VOA 22 Feb 2004 -- Pakistan's top nuclear scientist has confessed to being at the center of an international black market in nuclear weapons technology. In the wake of revelations about his dangerous trade, President George W. Bush is calling for new international cooperation to stop the spread of weapons of mass destruction.
  • Powell: Fusion of WMD and Terrorists Must Be Prevented Washington File 20 Feb 2004 -- The free people of the world, not terrorists or those engaged in proliferation, will define the essence of the 21st century, Secretary of State Colin Powell told an audience gathered February 20 to celebrate the 100th birthday of Cold War containment architect George Kennan.
  • U.S. Rolls Out New Electronic Defense Export Licensing System Washington File 20 Feb 2004 -- The U.S. Department of State has launched its new electronic licensing system for defense exports that will make coordination of the licensing process with the Department of Defense and other federal agencies more efficient and effective, says Assistant Secretary of State Lincoln Bloomfield.
  • BUSH ON NON-PROLIFERATON VOA 19 Feb 2004 -- President Bush's speech on ways to halt the spread of nuclear proliferation is continuing to draw comment in the foreign press
  • Japan, US agree to boost cooperation in nuke nonproliferation PLA Daily 19 Feb 2004 -- Japan and the United States agreed Wednesday to boost cooperation to strengthen international efforts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear technologies, Japanese foreign ministry said.
  • President Reiterates Need to Curb the Proliferation of WMD Washington File 14 Feb 2004 -- In his weekly address to the nation February 14, President Bush said the greatest threat to humanity is the "possibility of secret and sudden attack with weapons of mass destruction" and he discussed several domestic and international initiatives to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
  • Bush Says Terrorists Must Lose Race for Weapons of Mass Murder AFPS 14 Feb 2004 -- When suicidal terrorists used commercial airliners as bombs on Sept. 11, 2001, it raised the prospect of even worse dangers: terrorists armed with chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear weapons, President Bush said in his weekly radio address today.
  • BUSH / W-M-D VOA 14 Feb 2004 -- President Bush wants to expand international law enforcement efforts to stop the flow of technology and expertise relating to weapons of mass destruction. From the White House, V-O-A's Scott Stearns reports, Mr. Bush used his weekly radio address to repeat his call to limit sales of nuclear enrichment and reprocessing equipment.
  • Congressional Report Faults Export Verification Program Washington File 12 Feb 2004 -- The investigative agency of Congress has criticized as weak the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) program intended to verify that foreign users of U.S. advanced technology exports are complying with export license requirements.
  • NUCLEAR PROLIFERATION VOA 12 Feb 2004 -- President Bush Wednesday outlined proposed new steps to counter nuclear proliferation. The anti-proliferation initiative follows news that a Pakistan-based network peddled sensitive nuclear weapons technology abroad. Stemming the flow of such technology is a difficult task.
  • U.S.: Bush Proposes Major New Initiatives To Stop Nuclear Proliferation RFE/RL 12 Feb 2004 -- U.S. President George W. Bush, declaring that terrorists armed with nuclear material could pose "the greatest threat to mankind," is proposing a new initiative to restrict sales of nuclear technology and limit the number of nations allowed to produce nuclear fuel. Bush has outlined a seven-point plan that includes a ban on any new states acquiring uranium-reprocessing capabilities. The U.S. proposal is likely to be controversial since it undercuts a key provision of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, which allows countries that promise not to develop nuclear weapons to receive broad help in producing their own civilian nuclear power.
  • The German-American Relationship After Iraq US Dept. of State 12 Feb 2004 -- John R. Bolton, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, Conference of the Peace Research Institute Frankfurt
  • FUEL CELL PLANT VOA 11 Feb 2004 -- A big step has been taken in energy innovation (Tuesday) at a chemical plant in the city of Freeport, Texas, about 100 kilometers south of Houston. U-S Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham and Texas Governor Rick Perry inaugurated a fuel-cell electricity system. It is the world's first such plant operated by electricity generated from fuel cells. As V-O-A's Greg Flakus reports from Houston, this pilot project could lead to further development of the technology for lighting homes and powering vehicles.
  • BUSH - WEAPONS VOA 11 Feb 2004 -- President Bush is calling for tougher international action to stop the spread of weapons of mass destruction. Mr. Bush says current non-proliferation efforts have not done the job.
  • Bush Asks for Tougher Focus on Weapons of Mass Destruction AFPS 11 Feb 2004 -- The United States and its allies "will act on every lead to find the middlemen, the suppliers and the buyers" to stop the spread of deadly weapons, President Bush said today, proposing ways to strengthen the world's efforts toward that goal.
  • President Announces New Measures to Counter the Threat of WMD Remarks by the President on Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation Fort Lesley J. McNair - National Defense University Washington, D.C.
  • Fact Sheet: Strengthening International Efforts Against WMD Proliferation
  • US Army closes chemical weapons furnace after possible sarin leakage PLA Daily 06 Feb 2004 -- The US Army has shut down a chemical weapons incinerator following an alarm on Wednesday afternoon indicating a possible leak of sarin, a deadly nerve agent.

    January

  • DoD Experience with Anthrax, Smallpox Vaccines Shows Safety AFPS 30 Jan 2004 -- The military's anthrax and smallpox immunizations are safe to administer to service members, a senior military medical officer told 2004 Tricare conference attendees here Jan. 28.
  • US, Russia Discuss Halting Spread of WMDs RFE/RL 29 Jan 2004 -- The Undersecretary of State John Bolton has begun talks in Moscow aimed at convincing Russia to sign onto the U.S. initiative on halting the spread of weapons of mass destruction.
  • Congress Should Authorize New DOD Agency To Develop Vaccines, Drugs Against Biowarfare Agents The National Academies 22 Jan 2004 -- Congress should authorize the creation of a new agency within the Office of the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Defense, if drugs, vaccines, and other medical interventions against biowarfare agents are to be developed successfully, says a new congressionally mandated report from the Institute of Medicine and National Research Council of the National Academies. DOD's existing medical biodefense activities, currently carried out by several units in the department, should be transferred along with their funding and personnel to a new Medical Biodefense Agency.
  • Guard-Staffed WMD Civil Support Teams Slated for Increase AFPS 20 Jan 2004 -- The Defense Department plans to stand up more National Guard-staffed civil support teams trained to assist local authorities in the event of a weapons of mass destruction attack on the American homeland, a senior DoD official said Jan. 16.
  • U.S., China Intensify Nuclear Nonproliferation Cooperation Washington File 12 Jan 2004 -- The Department of Energy issued a press release January 12 announcing that the U.S. Secretary of Energy and the Chairman of China's Atomic Energy Authority had that day signed a Statement of Intent that establishes a process for cooperating with each other and for collaborating with the International Atomic Energy Agency on a range of nuclear nonproliferation and security activities.
  • US, India step up nuclear, defense cooperation PLA Daily 13 Jan 2004 -- US President George W. Bush announced on Monday that the United States and India will step up cooperation on civilian nuclear activities and expand talks on missile defense.
  • DoD Resumes Anthrax Vaccine Immunization Program AFPS 08 Jan 2004 -- A federal judge ruled Jan. 7 that the Defense Department could again legally administer anthrax immunizations to troops.