SIPRI monographs

During the postwar period, the efforts made to apply science and technology to human ends have increased dramatically. Regrettably, technological advance in weaponry has been foremost among the objectives to which the planners and practitioners of applied research have addressed themselves. Although its share has diminished recently, weapons development is still the largest single objective of world research and development efforts.

This study analyses the positions of 15 important near-nuclear countries—India, Pakistan, Israel, Egypt, South Africa, Japan, Australia, Spain, Brazil, Argentina, West Germany, Italy, Holland, Belgium and Switzerland—on the Non-Proliferation Treaty. In doing this it also describes the civilian nuclear programmes of these countries and assesses the possibilities of any of these countries acquiring nuclear weapons for reasons of national security.

This publication, which is based on the material contained in the 1973 SIPRI Yearbook of World Armaments and Disarmament, presents in a concise form what has been achieved in the field of arms control as of 31 December 1972. It is hoped that those who are involved in disarmament negotiations, as well as those who follow the negotiations, will find this publication useful.

The effects of chemical warfare agents are well known—the painful blisters caused by mustard gas, the lung damage caused by phosgene, the convulsions and paralysis caused by organophosphorus compounds, and so on. However, in addition to these acute effects, most chemical warfare agents are liable to cause delayed effects, such as cancers and injuries to the liver, bone marrow and nervous system.

This report is a contribution to the current international discussion on the subject of chemical disarmament verification. Its intention is to identify some of the major problems which will have to be faced in verifying a chemical disarmament convention.

The symposium and working groups which have led to the publication of this document were attended by a number of scientists from various countries, East and West.

One of SIPRI's activities is the production of a yearbook describing the major quantitative and qualitative changes in the world's arsenals during the year, and analyzing the efforts made to control the arms build-up. Each yearbook is a record of vast increases in all kinds of weaponry, a process virtually unhampered by arms control agreements.