European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - August 25, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                L for anew and debate Over testing pentagons toxic arms Victory by Bill Keller new York times the expected decision by the United states to end a 16year moratorium and resume military production of chemical weapons is being celebrated by the Pentagon As the end of a Long a House Senate conference has authorized million to begin production of a new chemical bomb and artillery billed As safer replacement for aged stockpiles of nerve the nerve Gas part of a Bill authorizing billion in military programs for the fiscal year beginning oct has been approved by the Senate and awaits a final House vote in but according to a wide Range of experts on both sides of the the debate has left unresolved a number of divisive questions about the future of the United states involvement with these including where they would be deployed and How they would be interviews with Pentagon members of and other involved in the chemical weapons debate have raised the following Points although most experts have said that Europe is the most Likely scene for a Battle with chemical european allies have walked at even discussing the deployment of the new weapons on their Pentagon officials say they have now decided to deploy them Only in the United states or on which critics say would be far from Many scientists and intelligence officials believe the United states cannot be fully confident that its new weapons will work without open air banned in the United states since yet politicians have said that there would be emphatic Public resistance to resuming a presidential commission that endorsed the production of new nerve Gas in june was among those who have said that the army chemical weapons program May be obsolete before it is the critics have faulted the army for not designing Long unmanned weapons to deliver chemical agents behind enemy lines without risking the lives of talks aimed at an International treaty Banning chemical weapons remain stymied in and there was Little optimism among Reagan administration officials or outside experts that the impasse could be because such a treaty would be extremely difficult to the Pentagon has promoted its new chemical weapons program in part on the ground that a sign of american determination would induce the soviet Union to bargain More seriously toward a but talks aimed at controlling chemical weapons have gone on without Success since and american intelligence officials have said that the soviet Union is perfecting More advanced nerve to some that raised the Prospect of a continuing chemical arms Richard retired army general who served on president Ronald reagans chemical warfare review which endorsed the new chemical program in said he was often exasperated by the reluctance of Pentagon officials and critics to look beyond the immediate one of the most politically volatile issues was whether to deploy the new weapons in especially after campaigns to deploy medium Range missiles and Neutron weapons the arguing that an encounter by superpowers would most Likely begin in voted in june to require that the North Atlantic treaty organization formally agree to store the new weapons on its soil before production could after Strong objections from the Pentagon and state department that this would cause political turmoil in the House Senate conference dropped the but the Bill would require the president to consult with allies and prepare a detailed deployment the conferees also approved a nonbinding statement that the new weapons would replace Pentagon officials now insist they have no plans to put the weapons in the new weapons Are considered safer to handle than the old ones because they contain separate canisters of nonlethal chemicals that mix to form a deadly vapor Only when the old weapons already contain the nerve agents in their deadly Amoretta the senior chemical weapons official of the said As a the new weapons could be stored safely in the United states or on ships and flown to the front when a crisis i honestly dont think it makes very much difference if the weapons Are not put in Hoeber said in an the chemical warfare review commission also endorsed that View in its John a former Pentagon official who wrote the commissions said it would be better to have some weapons he suggested it would be possible to store the heavy shells loaded with just one of the two ingredients in bringing the missing component of the binary nerve Gas in at the last critics of this plan have contended that having to whisk the weapons overseas in a time of crisis would take up scarce cargo space and possibly would raise the level of John Edward who opposed the new chemical weapons if i was a soviet military planner and saw the Rushing tons of chemical ordnance to the i would assume in about to be attacked with chemicals and would use mine testing has been another uncertainty in the new nerve Gas weapons after an open air test in 1968 was faulted for killing a flock of sheep near Dugway proving Congress banned outdoor testing unless the Pentagon certified that it was necessary for National Security and the Secretary of health and human services concurred that it was All tests of the proposed new a 155mm artillery Shell and Bigeye have been conducted using chemical with the actual chemical reactions confined to Matthew a professor of biochemistry at Harvard University who opposes the new said it would be totally unprecedented to Issue our troops untested the stimulants they have used Are just not like the nerve its unsafe not to the chemical warfare review commission has raised another question about the new chemical the Shell and bomb both Are the products of 1960s the commission and military weaponry and assumptions have altered in the the commission said the most urgent military need was a chemical weapon that could reach behind enemy lines to hit command centers and Supply it said the planned Bigeye bomb is not the optimal solution because it would expose pilots and valuable aircraft to antiaircraft the such As chemical ballistic or cruise have been neglected by military the report cheers August 1985 the stars and stripes Page 13