May 22, 1998
FACT SHEET
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
(Annapolis, Maryland)
___________________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release
May 22, 1998
FACT SHEET
PREPAREDNESS FOR A BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS ATTACK
President Clinton recognizes that the availability of biological agents and
advances in biotechnology mean that the United States must be prepared for
an attack involving biological weapons against our armed forces or
civilians.
Already, the U.S. military is working hard to defend against this danger.
The possibility that during the recent crisis in the Persian Gulf region
our forces might be confronted with biological weapons produced by Saddam
Hussein?s secret program demonstrates the urgency of this effort. Under
President Clinton?s leadership, the Department of Defense has made real
strides to protect American troops:
An additional $1 billion for chemical and biological defense were added to
the Five-Year Defense Plan.
Starting today, the Defense Department?s vaccination program against the
lethal anthrax bacteria is being expanded to include not just troops in
the Gulf region but all active and reserve American armed forces
personnel.
America?s military is also playing an important role in domestic
preparedness.
Under the Nunn-Lugar-Domenici Program, military experts are participating
in the training of emergency personnel in our 120 largest cities for
response to a terrorist attack involving weapons of mass destruction.
Today, the Department of Defense is announcing the selection of ten states
in which National Guard units will be specially trained to assist state
and local authorities to manage the consequences of a WMD attack. The
states are: Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Illinois,
Texas, Missouri, Colorado, California and Washington.
President Clinton believes we must do more to protect our civilian
population from the scourge of biological weapons. In his commencement
speech at Annapolis, he announced that the government would develop a
comprehensive strategy to address this threat. There are four critical
areas of focus:
First, if terrorists release bacteria or viruses to harm Americans, we must
be able to identify the pathogens with speed and certainty. The
President?s plan will seek to improve our public health and medical
surveillance systems so the alarm can be sounded fast. These
improvements will benefit not only our preparedness for a biological
weapons attack -- they will pay off in an enhanced ability to respond
quickly and effectively to outbreaks of emerging infectious diseases.
Second, our emergency response personnel must have the training and
equipment to do their jobs right. Building on current programs,
President Clinton?s plan will ensure that federal, state and local
authorities have the resources and the knowledge they need to deal with
a crisis.
Third, we must have the medicines and vaccines needed to treat those who
fall sick or prevent those at risk from falling ill because of a
biological weapons attack. President Clinton will propose the creation
of an unprecedented civilian medical stockpile. The choice of medicines
and vaccines to be stockpiled will be made on the basis of the pathogens
that are most likely to be in the hands of terrorists or hostile powers.
Fourth, the revolution in biotechnology offers enormous possibilities for
combating biological weapons. President Clinton?s plan will set out a
coordinated research and development effort to use the advances in
genetic engineering and biotechnology to create the next generation of
medicines, vaccines and diagnostic tools for use against these weapons.
# # #
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
