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SUBJECT: CENTAF IRAQ'S CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS PROGRAM DESCRIPTION: REPORTS ON IRAQ'S PAST DUE USE OF CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS INCLUDING THE IRAN/IRAQ WAR AND IRAQ'S DEVELOPMENT SINCE THE 1960S. IMMEDIATE PAGE 01 OF 03 003G99 09117 16Z OPR CAT(01) INFO COMEBACK COPY (01) 09/l852Z A1 14 (TOTAL COPIES 002) OA4 ZYUW RUCJACC1013 2sal706 RUCJCCA. ZNY 091 326Z SEP 90 FM USCENTCOM REAR MACDILL AFB FL TO USCINCCENT 0 082025Z SEP 90 FM JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC INFO RUE,ADWDXOCSA WASH GTON DC MULTIPLE ADDRESSEES
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PAGE 02 OF 03 RUCJACC 1013 083S99 Z9~17162
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SUBJ: IRAQ'S CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS PROGRAM (U)
1. {U) BACKGROUND AND PERSPECTIVE
A. (U) SINCE THE INVASION OF KUWAIT BY IRAQI FORCES, THERE HAS
BEEN A GREAT CONCERN ABOUT THE USE AND CAPABILITIES OF IRAQI MADE
CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS. THIS REPORT WILL ATTEMPT TO
PROVIDE A- MORE IN-DEPTH AND REALISTIC VIEW OF THE STATEGIC WEAPON
IN IRAQ, IRAQ'S CHEMICAL PROGRAMS, THE PRODUCTION OF MUSTARD GAS
NERVE AND BIOLOGICAL AGENTS, AND THE POSSIBLE IMPLICATIONS TO U.S.
TROOPS DEPLOYED IN THE A.O.R,
B. THE MASSIVE USE OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS DURING THE LATTER
STAGES OF THE IRAN-IRAQ WAR SHOCKED THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY.
SINCE THAT TIME, A CAMPAIGN TO HALT THE PROLIFERATION OF THESE
WEAPONS HAS BEEN INITIATED BY THE UNITED STATES. HOWEVER, THE
DEVELOPMENT AND EVER INCREASING PRODUCTION CAPABILITIES OF IRAQ'S
FACILITIES INDICATE THAT THE U.S. INITIATED ACTIONS HAVE HAD
LITTLE EFFECTS.
C. IRAQ CONTINUES TO INVEST SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNTS OF RESOURCES
IN DEVELOPING ITS CHEMICAL AND PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES. WHILE THE
MAJORITY OF THESE FACILITIES APPEAR TO BE LEGITIMATE, IT IS
APPARENT , AND NOT INCONCEIVABLE, THAT THESE FACILITIES ARE BEING
USED TO MAKE THE NECESSARY PRECURSORS FOR CHEMICAL WEAPONS. IT HAS
BEEN A POLICY, AND AN APPARENT HOPE, THAT THE U.S. EFFORTS TO
RESTRICT IRAQ'S CW EFFORTS BY RELIANCE ON EXPORT CONTROLS OF KEY
PRECURROR ELEMENTS. HOWEVER, THIS POLICY WILL BE OF LITTLE VALUE
AS SOON AS IRAQ BECOMES INDEPENDENT OF FOREIGN SOURCES OF PRECURSOR
CHEMICALS.
D. BADUSH, BAIJI, AL QAIM, SAMARRA, AKASHAT, AL FALLUJAH,
BAGHDAD. SALMAN PAK, MUSAYYIB, AND BASRA ARE CHEMICAL AND
BIOLOGICAL WARFARE RELATED LOCATIONS. THESE FACILITIES, AS A WHOLE.
GIVE IRAQ THE LARGEST. AND POSSIBLY THE MOST SOPHISTICATED CHEMICAL
WEAPONS PROGRAM IN THE THIRD WORLD. SIGNIFICANTLY, IRAQ CONTINUES
TO EXPAND ITS CHEMICAL PRODUCTION OUTPUT. AND SUBSTANTIAL
IMMEDIATE PAGE 03 OF 03 RUCJACC 1013 003599 09/l716Z INVESTMENTS IN REDUCING IT5 DEPENDENCE ON FOREIGN SOURCES OF ASSISTANCE. E. (U) SINCE THE IRAN-IRAQ WAR, THE USE OF CHEMICAL AGENTS SUGGESTS THAT UNCONVENTIONAL WEAPONS NOW PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN IRAQI POLITICAL-MILITARY THINKING. BAGHDAD, IN PARTICULAR SADDAM HUSSEIN, IS DRIVEN BY A COMBINATION OF INSECURITY AND AGGRESSIVENESS. IRAQ'S NEIGHBORS, ESPECIALLY IRAN, SYRIA, AND RECENTLY ISRAEL, HAVE ALWAYS BEEN ADVERSARIES TO THE HEGEMONIC ASPIRATIONS OF IRAQ'S ARAB DOMINATION. THUS, IRAQ'S LEADERS HAVE SOUGHT THE CAPABILITIES NEEDED TO ENSURE THEIR STATUS AS A RESPECTED REGIONAL POWER. 2. (U) IRAQ'S CHEMICAL PROGRAM A. IRAQ APPEARS TO HAVE INITIATED ITS CHEMICAL WEAPONS' PROGRAM IN THE 1960'S. BY 1985, IRAQ WAS PRODUCING A NUMBER OF CHEMICAL AGENTS, INCLUDING MUSTARD GAS AND TWO DIFFERENT TYPES OF NERVE AGENTS. IT IS POSSIBLE THAT IRAQ HAS DEVELOPED A CHEMICAL AGENT PRODUCTION CAPACITY OF 700 TONS PER YEAR. SOME OTHER ESTIMATES HAVE THE PRODUCTION CAPACITY 20 TIMES LARGER. B. THE CHEMICAL AGENT USED MOST COMMONLY DURING THE IRAN-IRAQ WAR WAS MUSTARD GAS. BY 1985, AT A SMALL PLANT IN SAMARRA, THE IRAQIS WERE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING ABOUT 50 TONS OF MUSTARD GAS PER YEAR. THOUGH ETHYLENE IS THE BASE ELEMENT IN THE PRODUCTION OF MUSTARD GAS, IT IS THIODIGLYCOL THAT IS THE MOST COMMON PRECURSOR. INITIALLY, IRAQ HAD TO RELY ON WESTERN EUROPE AND THE UNITED STATES FOR THIS IMPORTANT PRECUSOR AGENT. HOWEVER, IRAQ NO LONGER RELIES - ON IMPORTS OF THIODIGLYCOL, DUE TO SELF SUFFICIENCY. ABOUT ONE TON OF THIODIGLYCOL MAKES ONE TON OF MUSTARD GAS. THE OTHER KEY INGREDIENT, HYDROCHLORIC ACID, CAN BE OBTAINED ON THE OPEN MARKET. C. IN THE EARLY 1980'S, AND WITH THE HELP OF WEST EUROPEAN COMPANIES' PILOT PLANTS AT SAMARRA WERE CAPABLE OF MAKING LIMITED AMOUNTS OF NERVE AGENTS. THE TWO AGENTS PRODUCED AT THIS TIME WERE SARIN AND TABUN. WHILE IRAQ MAINTAINS IT HAS NEVER EMPLOYED NERVE AGENTS, A U.N. INVESTIGATION CONCLUDED THAT TADUN WAS PROBABLY USED AGAINST IRANIAN FORCES IN EARLY 1987. IT IS ALSO BELIEVED THAT NERVE AGENTS WERE USED AGAINST THE KURDISH TOWN OF HALABJA IN MARCH 1988. THERE IS SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE TO SUGGEST A DELIBERATE EFFORT ON IRAQ'S PART TO PRODUCE NOT ONLY THE NERVE AGENTS, BUT THE PRECURSOR CHEMICALS AS WELL. THIS IMPLIES LIMITED EFFORTS BY THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TO CONTROL THE PROLIFERATION OF CHEMICAL AND NERVE WEAPONS. 3. (U) CONCLUSIONS A. IRAQ'S USE OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS DURING THE IRAN-IRAQ WAR, COUPLED WITH THE EVER INCREASING PRODUCTION CAPABILITIES AND CAPACITIES, INDICATE THE WILLINGNESS OF IRAQ'S LEADERSHIP TO EMPLOY THESE WEAPONS. THE CONCERN TO U.S. FORCES IS GENUINE, AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED MINIMAL FOR THOSE TROOPS LOCATED IN FORWARD POSITIONS. THE BIOLOGICAL WARFARE THREAT IS CONSIDERED MINIMAL AT THIS TIME. BT #1013 NNNN
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