Interational Response: Afghanistan Update

The United Nations is not interested in engaging in peacekeeping, nation-building or transitional government in Afghanistan if the ruling Taliban falls from power as a result of U.S.-U.K. and Afghan opposition strikes, said Lakhdar Brahimi, U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan's special envoy to the country, yesterday in New York (U.N. Newservice, Oct. 17).

Annan said last week that an expanded mandate could allow the world body to help Afghans "through a transitional period if they come together and work to form a broad-based government" (UN Wire, Oct. 15), and U.S. President George W. Bush has said the world body could handle "the stabilization of a future government" (UN Wire, Oct. 12).  Brahimi, though, said the world body will only provide aid, seek conflict resolution and help in reconstruction.

"I very firmly say that the United Nations -- and this is as a consequence of discussion with the secretary general this morning -- is definitely not seeking anything of that sort," Brahimi said when asked about transitional administration.  "Again, I repeat, the U.N. is not seeking a transitional administration or peacekeeping or anything like that."

In terms of reconstruction, the United Nations "will definitely be doing as much as we can; that is a different thing from actually providing a direct administration for the country," Brahimi said.  "We cannot produce a solution out of a hat to this problem; all we can do is see how we can bring all the parties that have a say together," he added.  "We will go wherever and whenever it is necessary and useful to do so, but you don't rush around just for the sake of doing it" (U.N. Newservice).

Following reports yesterday that U.N. Security Council members dismissed the idea of a Turkish-dominated post-Taliban peacekeeping force in Afghanistan, the London Guardian reports today that Turkey is being asked to supply troops to such a force and possibly to lead it.  U.K. Foreign Secretary Jack Straw was to discuss the issue today in the Turkish capital, Ankara, with Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit, according to the Guardian (Jonathan Steele, London Guardian, Oct. 18).

A U.S. bomb yesterday hit a boys' school in the Afghan capital, Kabul, but did not explode, U.N. coordinator in Afghanistan Hassan Firdaus said yesterday.  U.N. demining workers are attempting to defuse the bomb, which could explode at any time, Firdaus said (Karachi Business Recorder, Oct. 18).  In related news, U.K. Defense Ministry sources and the U.S. Defense Department have said International Committee of the Red Cross warehouses hit by allied strikes this week in Kabul housed Taliban guards and military equipment.  U.K. defense sources said the strike was nonetheless "regrettable" (CNN.com, Oct. 18).

The war could last as long as two years, Bush said yesterday.  "It may take more than two years. ... So long as anybody's terrorizing established governments, there needs to be a war," he said.  "You mark my words, people are going to get tired of the war on terrorism" (Deborah Orin, New York Post, Oct. 18).

The U.S. Defense Department is broadcasting threatening messages and instructions for surrender into Afghanistan from an airborne radio station, CNN reports.  "Our forces are armed with state-of-the-art military equipment," one script reads.  "What are you using -- obsolete and ineffective weaponry?  Our helicopters will rain fire down upon your camps before you detect them on your radar.  Our bombs are so accurate we can drop them right through your windows.  Our infantry is trained for any climate on Earth.  United States soldiers fire with superior marksmanship and are armed with superior weapons."

"If you surrender, no harm will come to you," the message adds (Jamie McIntyre, CNN.com, Oct. 18).  In a message broadcast to Taliban fighters' field radios, Supreme Leader Mohamed Omar yesterday pledged to defeat "the big infidel" with God's help and urged combatants not to fear death (BBC Online II, Oct. 17).

Bin Laden has allegedly written letters to supporters in London asking them to obtain weapons of mass destruction and to "kill, fight, create traps and destroy" Americans.  U.S. sanctions on Iraq are the "worst international terrorism," and the "sacred duty of Muslims" is to drive U.S. troops from Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf, bin Laden wrote, according to La Repubblica  (Alberto Custodero, La Repubblica, Oct. 17, UN Wire translation).  For bin Laden's letters, in Italian, click here, here, here and here.

The Bush administration has reserved the right to expand the war beyond Afghanistan and possibly to Iraq, but Straw said today that the United Kingdom has no evidence linking Baghdad to the al-Qaeda network of suspected terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden.  Strikes against Iraq are not appropriate at present, Straw said (Agence France-Presse/La Tribune, Oct. 18, UN Wire translation).

Gerard Baker of the Financial Times  writes that Iraq should be kept in mind as a possible target because of the likelihood it is linked to anthrax attacks on the United States.  "Though no one knows who is behind this spate of attacks, everyone knows the identity of the one country that has aggressively stockpiled a witch's brew of anthrax, botulinum toxin, mustard gas and virtually every other poison its leader's evil mind can dream up.  It is America's nemesis, Saddam Hussein's Iraq," Baker says.  "There may be no connection between Iraq and the events of Sept. 11, or between Mr. Saddam and the toxic envelopes spilling onto American desks.  But does anyone really doubt that if Mr. Saddam could harm America, he would?" he concludes (Gerard Baker, Financial Times, Oct. 18).

"In 1981, Israeli jets destroyed Saddam Hussein's capacity for developing an atomic bomb," writes Richard Cohen in the Washington Post.  "Naturally, the United Nations passed a resolution condemning Israel.  There were even those in the United States who agreed with the United Nations.  I did not.  I now want America to do something similar:  destroy Iraq's capacity to wage chemical and biological warfare" (Richard Cohen, Washington Post, Oct. 18).

Bush is in Shanghai today for an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting and talks on terrorism and other topics with Chinese President Jiang Zemin, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and South Korean President Kim Dae-jung (Ron Fournier, Associated Press/Philadelphia Inquirer, Oct. 18).  Bush's spokesman, Ari Fleischer, denied a Tuesday Washington Post report that U.S. sanctions against China, imposed after Beijing's 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy activists, could be waived in an effort to shore up China's support for the global anti-terror coalition (BBC Online, Oct. 17).

The Los Angeles Times today says the APEC summit "has a chance to produce valuable support for a necessary campaign."  For the Times' editorial, click here.

U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and French President Jacques Chirac are to meet tomorrow to discuss Afghanistan and other international issues ahead of a European Union meeting, Chirac's office said yesterday (AFP/Dawn, Oct. 18).

U.K. Member of Parliament Bob Marshall-Andrews called for an international court to try bin Laden (BBC Online, Oct. 18).

Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien yesterday went to Halifax, Nova Scotia province, to see off Canadian navy and air force personnel departing on their way to aid anti-terror efforts.  "I am here to say on behalf of all Canadians that you are all heroes.  That your nation is proud of you.  That Canadians are praying for you," Chretien said (Allison Lawlor, Globe and Mail, Oct. 17).

Russian Army Chief of Staff Anatoly Kvashnin today met in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, with Mohamed Fahim, the commander of the Afghan opposition Northern Alliance, Northern Alliance Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah and Tajik Defense Minister Sherali Khayrulloyev.  The leaders discussed the military situation in Afghanistan, the opposition's plans, and the provision of Russian arms to opposition forces, AFP reports (AFP/Liberation, Oct. 18, UN Wire translation).

Afghan veterans of prior anti-Taliban battles, now refugees in Uzbekistan, are preparing to join the Northern Alliance for offensives in northern Afghanistan following the softening of Taliban resistance by U.S.-led strikes, USA Today  reports.  At least 5,000 Afghans live in Uzbekistan (Tom Squitieri, USA Today, Oct. 18).

Citing remarks by inhabitants of the town of Denau, Uzbekistan, the New York Times reports that Uzbeks near the Afghan border are expressing support for U.S. strikes against Afghanistan as a means of combating terrorism and unseating a dangerous neighboring regime.  "It is easy to see why President [Islom] Karimov is letting American planes and soldiers come to our bases," said one man.  "Maybe they were once our enemy, but it is possible now to solve one of Uzbekistan's deepest problems with the hands of a great power."

"They would prohibit us from drinking vodka, and to make love to another man's wife would become a dangerous thing," bus driver Ismat Islamov said of the Taliban.  "Uzbeks don't want that" (C.J. Chivers, New York Times, Oct. 18).

Saudi Arabia and Egypt have withheld their cooperation from anti-terror efforts by refusing to provide U.S. officials with lists of airline passengers bound for the United States, U.S. officials said yesterday.  Ninety-four airlines provide such information, but Saudi Arabian Airlines and Egypt Air do not, the officials said (Robert Pear, Washington Post, Oct. 18).

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U.S. Response: Life Insurance Industry Could Ask for Aid

The life insurance industry plans to present a proposal to the White House and Congress to study if the industry would need U.S. aid in the case of a massive terrorist attack, the New York Times reported today.  Under the proposal, Congress would establish a commission headed by the U.S. treasury secretary under pending legislation to aid property insurers (see GSN, Oct. 16). 

Phil Anderson, chief lobbyist for the American Council of Life Insurers, which drafted the proposal, said the life insurance industry is an important part of U.S. life.  He compared assisting the industry to assisting airlines, for which Congress approved a $15 billion bailout.  “Families have depended on financial security via life insurance benefits.  You don’t have to take trips to Cancun.  People do have to make the mortgage payments and pay for the kids’ education,” he said.

Nonetheless, Anderson said the life insurance industry is able pay all the claims from the Sept. 11 attacks.  “There is no visible evidence of a problem at this time, but due diligence requires that we study the potential problems that could occur,” he said.

Congressional aides were dubious yesterday that a life insurance measure would pass Congress, the New York Times reported.  The director of insurance for the Consumer Federation of America, J. Robert Hunter, said the industry should use its own resources to decide if it would require aid or not, rather than asking Congress to conduct a study.  “They have all the data.  They could say to Congress, ‘Here’s when we might need help, if we had 500,000 deaths, or if it’s 50,000,’” he said (Joseph Treaster, New York Times, Oct. 18).

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CTBT: Entry Into Force Conference to Meet in November

The Conference Facilitating the Entry into Force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty has been rescheduled for Nov. 11 to 13 at U.N. headquarters in New York, U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhard announced yesterday.  The meeting was originally scheduled for Sept. 25 to 27, but was delayed after the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington (U.N. Newservice, Oct. 17).

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North Korea:  No Improvement in Cooperation with IAEA, ElBaradei Says

North Korea has made no recent efforts to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency in analyzing the country’s past nuclear program, IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei said yesterday.

“We are still where we had been a year ago.  We continue to verify the freeze of the existing facilities, but we haven’t really made any progress with regard to verification of the past program,” ElBaradei said.

“We want to see how much plutonium has been produced in North Korea and make sure that it is declared to us and put under safeguards,” he said.

North Korea probably believed that because the reactor project called for under the 1994 Agreed Framework was behind schedule (see GSN, Oct. 5) “they feel there is no reason for them to start cooperating with us,” ElBaradei said, adding “I hope that once they get a schedule for delivery they will come to us” (Reuters/MSNBC.com, Oct. 17).

North Korea would implement the safeguards agreement once the Agreed Framework was implemented, according to North Korean representative Kim Chang Guk, in a statement yesterday to the U.N. First Committee on Disarmament (U.N. release, Oct. 17).

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U.S. Forces:  More Bombers Needed, Say Experts

The U.S. Air Force needs to turn its focus away from purchasing new tactical fighter aircraft towards modernizing and expanding the bomber force, said a panel of military experts at a Cato Institute forum yesterday. 

“When the next war breaks out, the president may do well not to ask where are the carriers, but where are the bombers?” said Jack Spencer, a defense policy analyst with the Heritage Foundation.

Panel members said that bombers in the post-Cold War environment would continue to play a role in U.S. nuclear warfare policy as they did during the Cold War.  One advantage of a nuclear-capable bomber, as opposed to an ICBM, is that a bomber can be recalled, said a Cato Institute policy analysis by Williamson Murray, an Ohio State University emeritus professor.  New bombers should be able to carry nuclear weapons and could potentially reduce the amount of nuclear weapons in the U.S. stockpile, said Spencer.  He added that “space bombers” could reduce the need for a U.S. nuclear counterstrike capability by being able to drop non-nuclear weapons on enemy nuclear bases. 

If it would reduce the total cost of building a new bomber by making them non-nuclear capable, however, then “we should explore that,” said Ivan Eland of the Cato Institute.  It was not expensive to retrofit an aircraft to carry nuclear weapons, said retired Air Force General Richard Hawley.  He added that where the costs come in is the training of pilots and maintenance. 

The role of the U.S. bomber force in conventional missions will also continue to grow, according to the panel.  Hawley cited statistics showing that in the first nine days of airstrikes over Afghanistan, bombers flew 10 percent of the mission, while dropping 80 percent of the total ordnance and being responsible for 75 percent of damaged or destroyed targets.  The successful role of bombers during the air war in Kosovo and Desert Storm was also cited by the panel.

The panel gave several reasons for the need to modernize the U.S. bomber force.  One was the age of the B-52, one of the three types of bombers used by the Air Force.  The B-52 will be more than 80 years old before the Air Force plans to replace them, said the Cato analysis.  “If the Air Force modernized its tactical fighters at the same rate as its plan for bombers, the Wright Flyer would still have been used during Desert Storm,” Spencer said.

The increasing limitation of access to front line airbases also illustrates the need for a long-range bomber.  We are “in the midst of our first access-restricted war of the 21^st century,” said Hawley.  The United States lacks airbases in emerging conflict areas, such as East and South Asia, the panel said.  Geopolitical circumstances are seen as responsible for lack of access to established bases, such as air bases in Saudi Arabia, said Spencer. The Cato analysis said heavy bombers that can operate from “less-vulnerable bases in theaters that are far away from the fighting or even from bases in the United States” are needed.

The Pentagon needs to move priorities away from new tactical fighter systems, such as the F-22, and towards a new bomber force, according to the Cato analysis.  “We don’t even have [an enemy] to fight with the F-22,” Eland said.  The Pentagon should look at replacing the current bomber force with 90 to 100 B-2 stealth bombers, said Hawley, adding they were the best all-around bomber for current and future needs (Mike Nartker, GSN, Oct. 17).

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Anthrax: Exposure Cases Increase Dramatically

The number of anthrax exposures cases increased dramatically in Washington (see GSN, Oct. 17) and potential new exposures were discovered in New York and, for the first time outside of the United States, in Kenya, according to worldwide reports yesterday.

In Washington, 26 U.S. Senate staff members and five police officers tested positive for exposure to anthrax following the arrival of a letter to Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) that contained anthrax spores, said Congressional leaders yesterday.  Nasal swabs detected anthrax bacterium in 23 Daschle staffers, three aids to Senator Russell Feingold (D-Wis.), whose office is next to Daschle's and five police officers who responded to the initial situation on Monday, said officials.  No other positive tests had turned up during the day, said Deputy Surgeon General Kenneth Moritsugu, adding, "we will not see large numbers" of new exposures, although more positives were possible.  The strain of anthrax detected in Daschle's office was a common strain that responded well to antibiotics and no spores had turned up in the ventilation system, however, there was a one positive test in the building's mailroom, health officials said.

In response, the House of Representatives adjourned through the weekend so their buildings could be tested for anthrax.  The Senate closed three office buildings but decided to remain in session.  "We don't believe there's a rationale to shut down," said Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) (Lancaster/Schmidt, Washington Post, Oct. 18). 

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) will coordinate the testing and cleanup of the Senate and House office buildings.  “Now we’re in the cleanup phase,” said Program Manager Robert Gibbs.  The testing for anthrax should take no more than four days, said Daschle.  The Centers for Disease Control’s National Institute of Occupational Safety will test the air in six congressional office buildings for anthrax and then workers from the Environmental Protection Agency will test surfaces within the buildings.  A command center was set up to coordinate sampling efforts and officials will determine every six hours whether or not to extend the perimeter, said Senator Bill Frist (R-Tenn.).  “We’ll be ready to go back to work on Monday,” Daschle said (John Heilprin, RealCities.com, Oct. 18).

It was unlikely that the anthrax spores sent to Daschle could have spread in dangerous amounts to the rest of the Hart Senate Office Building through the ventilation system, bioterrorism and building experts said yesterday.  What appeared to be fine particles of weapon-grade spores would be quickly diluted in an office building and be at least partially filtered by a standard office ventilation system that was in working order, said experts.  Once the spores leave the building through exhaust ducts, they pose even less of a threat.  "Once it goes to the outside, it'll quickly be diluted so that it's not a hazard," said Richard Spertzel, a former weapons inspector for the U.N. Special Commission on Iraq. 

Anthrax typically floats in the air instead of sticking to surfaces, however, so the ventilation would have cleared the office, according to Spertzel.  "If you had left the [ventilation system] on, you could walk in there in two to two and a half hours and be perfectly safe," Spertzel said.  The possibility of mass exposure to anthrax through an office building's ventilation system is very low, said James Woods, founding director of the HP-Woods Research Institute.  "There's a huge fear factor, but when we stop and think about it, the probability of getting exposed is pretty low," Woods said (Glanz/Rosenbaum, New York Times, Oct. 18). 

In New York, Governor George Pataki and his staff evacuated their Manhattan office after a small amount of anthrax spores were found.  The source of the spores was unknown, according to officials.  One possibility might be that state police had carried the spores after escorting Pataki to news offices where anthrax had been found or was suspected, said Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik (Purdum/Mitchell, New York Times, Oct. 18).  “We’re going to continue to run the state government from here and run it well,” Pataki said from his temporary offices at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center (Eric Lipton, New York Times, Oct. 18).   

The strain of anthrax sent to NBC News was the same as the one sent to American Media Inc. in Florida (see GSN, Oct. 9), according to officials.  "The strain in New York appears to match the strain in Florida," said David Fleming of the CDC.  Matching the strains does not mean that they were sent by the same source, said experts (Purdum/Mitchell, New York Times). The New York and Florida strain does occur naturally and is found in hoofed animals such as cows and deer, the CDC said (Karen Gullo, RealCities.com, Oct. 18).

Genetic testing on the DNA from the anthrax spores sent to Daschle had yet to be completed but the anthrax did arrive in an envelope almost identical to the one sent to NBC, according to the New York Times. The new evidence supports the idea of a coordinated attack, according to the Times.  None of the anthrax found in Florida, New York or Washington is resistant to antibiotic treatment, said Fleming.  “I’m glad we’re not dealing with somebody who’s developed a resistant strain.  That’s a possibility that would’ve been very worrisome,” said one federal scientists working with the investigation (Andrew Revkin, New York Times, Oct. 18).

Hundreds of employees of AMI are going through a second round of anthrax testing and picking up another supply of antibiotics, according to the Associated Press.  “All we can do is take the second test and see,” said AMI employee Donnie Gilbert.  The results of the new tests could be available by Friday and those who do test positive are at little risk because they have been protected by antibiotics, said health officials (Ken Thomas, Real Cities.com, Oct. 18).

Congressional members from Florida said they would push for more federal funding to help the state deal with the anthrax exposures and to improve security at Florida’s deep-water ports.  Representative Clay Shaw (R-Fla.) said he would draft a letter to Republican  leaders in search of more funds.  Representatives Carrie Meek (D-Fla.) and Mark Foley (R-Fla.) said that Shaw should seek the support of all of Florida’s representatives, as well as the state’s two senators, in the effort.  “This is a chance to use our collective strength, both Republicans and Democrats, to say ‘Here are our unique needs,’” said Foley (Frank Davis, Miami Herald, Oct. 17).

Russia has banned all meat and livestock shipped from Florida because of anthrax concerns and will not lift the ban until the full scale of the anthrax occurrences is known, said the Russian Agriculture Ministry yesterday.  “We believe it’s wholly unjustified,” said Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Department spokesman Terence McElroy.  “We’re working with the U.S. [Food and Drug Administration] and other federal agencies to convince Russia all of our agricultural products are absolutely safe.”  Forty percent of the 694,000 tons of U.S. poultry shipped to Russia comes from Florida, according to the Moscow Times (Shannon Tan, Miami Herald, Oct. 18).

A letter to a Kenyan from Atlanta contained white powder that tested positive for anthrax, said Health Minister Sam Ongeri.  The recipient and four family members "may have come into contact" with the spores and were bring tested, but were "not in danger," Ongeri said. 

Powder was found in two other letters, including one sent to an official with the U.N. Environment Program in Nairobi.  The U.N. letter was mailed from Pakistan and appeared suspicious when it arrived, said UNEP spokesman Nick Nuttall.  "It was a very sort of dirty looking envelope with rather eccentric writing on it.  It just looked dirty, odd and suspicious.  We get thousands of letters and some do look a bit odd," Nuttall said.  Powder from the U.N. letter, along with a third letter received by a Kenyan businessman, had been sent to the Kenya Medical Research Institute for testing, Ongeri said (Associated Press/New York Times, Oct. 18).

Government officials and consumers alike are looking for new sources of anthrax treatments, especially the antibiotic Cipro (see GSN, Oct. 17), in the wake of skyrocketing demand, according to reports.  Bayer, the German pharmaceutical company that holds the patent on Cipro, said yesterday it might allow other companies to make the drug for the United States.  At least five other drug companies are prepared to make a generic form of Cipro for U.S. markets, according to the New York Times.  Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, concerned that the public was focusing too much on Cipro, said the FDA was approving two generic drugs – doxycycline and penicillin – for use against inhaled anthrax.  “Because these drugs are available in generic form and produced by several manufacturers,” Thompson said.  “They will be relatively inexpensive and readily available.  The FDA’s approval will include instructions on what dose to use and how long to treat the inhalational form of anthrax.” Thompson said (Peterson/Pear, New York Times, Oct. 18).

Thompson opposed the idea of violating the patent on Cipro, saying it was illegal, and federal officials said they would not try to break Bayer’s patent.  “I am as convinced as ever that the administration has the legal authority to do this,” said Senator Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), who has pushed for allowing companies to make generic version of Cipro.  Patent lawyers agreed that the federal government had the authority to act and that there was legal precedent for the government to buy other generic drugs.  “It boils down to something very simple,” said patent attorney Alfred Engelberg.  “The government has the right to procure whatever it needs for government purposes” (Elisabeth Bumiller, New York Times, Oct. 18).

In the meantime, Mexican pharmacists are selling more doses of Cipro, often to Americans crossing the border, according to Associated Press.  “Many people are buying antibiotics.  The majority are Americans.  They say people are afraid,” said pharmacy manager Carlos Aguilera.  Prices for Cipro were between 68 cents and $2.80 a tablet in pharmacies along the Mexican border, according to the AP.  The American Medical Association told doctors yesterday to stop needlessly prescribing Cipro, warning that it is not approved for children, there are side effects that include confusion, depression, and vomiting and potential future resistance to the drug (Associated Press/London Guardian, Oct. 18).

The U.S. military is reducing the number of soldiers who are inoculated against anthrax due to a dwindling supply of the vaccine, said a Defense Department official.  The only troops being given the vaccine are those going overseas and are most at risk of a bioterrorism attack.  The Pentagon is waiting for BioPort Corp., the only U.S. company that makes the vaccine to receive FDA certification to release new batches, which may not come till next spring, said a Pentagon official.  If the government certifies the BioPort plant in the next few months, its stockpiles might be used in limited circumstances to inoculate civilians, said company spokeswoman Kelly Rossman-McKinney (Dave Moniz, USA Today, Oct. 18).  

Senator Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.) questioned who in President George W. Bush’s administration would be ultimately in charge in the event of a severe bioterrorism attack according to the Post.  “It’s not clear who is in charge.  Justice [Department] has part, FEMA, HHS has six different agencies,” Lieberman said.  “Tommy Thompson said that he considers himself the lead agency.  That’s encouraging, but it isn’t clear the everybody else considers him the lead agency” (Connolly/Gray, Washington Post, Oct. 18).  

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Smallpox:  U.S. Reconsiders Vaccine Program

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson said yesterday that he has started discussions with drug companies to buy 300 million smallpox vaccine doses and was asking Congress for $509 million to stockpile the vaccine.

"It looks very promising that we will have the 300 million doses by sometime next year," Thompson told reporters.  Earlier this month, he asked U.K. drug maker Acambis to speed delivery of 40 million doses from 2004 or 2005 to next summer.  He announced yesterday that Acambis will increase production to 54 million doses for the United States.  Thompson said he is also negotiating with three other companies to produce the vaccine.

Thompson also suggested the United States will consider vaccinating its population against smallpox.  "Sometime in the future, there may be a discussion that may lead to voluntary vaccination for the smallpox bug," Thompson said, signaling an apparent break with previous policy.  Thompson and other experts have expressed reluctance about widespread vaccination because of adverse side effects, which occur in one of 13,000 people vaccinated.  One in 1 million people dies from the vaccine (Sheryl Stolberg, New York Times, Oct. 18). 

Thompson told the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee yesterday that he was also considering diluting the current 15.4 million doses stockpile by five times, which would result in 77 million doses at 95 percent effectiveness. 

The administration of U.S. President George W. Bush has asked for $1.5 billion to increase bioterrorism preparedness, $1.2 billion of which would go to stockpiling drugs (Seth Borenstein, Miami Herald, Oct. 18).

Canada should also stockpile tens of thousands of smallpox vaccine doses or create a plan to produce vaccines quickly, said Mark Miller, president of the Canadian Infectious Disease Society.  He said he doubts Canada has any smallpox vaccine available, contradicting a statement by Canadian Health Minister Allan Rock earlier this week (Margaret Munro, National Post, Oct. 18).

The United Kingdom yesterday issued new guidelines to health personnel on how to deal with botulism, bubonic plague and smallpox, all of which could be used in a biological attack.  The government's chief medical officer, Liam Donaldson, urged people not to panic, saying there is "no specific threat" to the United Kingdom (Jeremy Laurance, London Independent, Oct. 18).

The use of smallpox in a biological attack is particularly worrisome to officials because smallpox is highly contagious and could require less technical sophistication to deliver than anthrax, the New York Times reports.  A U.S. war game in June resulted in a hypothetical smallpox epidemic that killed several million people.  Smallpox is also dangerous because a self-infected terrorist could walk through a crowd to infect others. 

Vaccinations ended in the United States in 1972, and the disease was eradicated worldwide in 1979, but samples of the virus are known to exist in U.S. and Russian laboratories (Stolberg, New York Times).

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U.S. Response: Thompson Requests More Funding for Bioresponse

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson announced yesterday the George W. Bush administration’s request for an additional $1.5 billion to combat bioterrorism and outlined how the government would use the funds to bolster biological attack defenses.  During testimony before the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs, Thompson noted the president’s request would increase the funding Congress appropriated for biological warfare preparation in FY 2001 by six times.  “Bioterrorism has not – and I want to underscore this – has not been a high fiscal priority in the past, and we need to move aggressively,” he said.

Thompson said $1.2 million of the proposal would be spent to speed drug development and stockpiling and improve distribution.  $643 million would expand the country’s pharmaceutical stockpile, and $509 million would go toward developing and buying smallpox vaccines (see GSN, today).  Increased funding would allow the government to add four “push packs,” each of which consists of 50 tons of pharmaceutical equipment such as antibiotics and oxygen masks for deployment after an attack. 

The Health and Human Services Department would receive $88 million under the proposal, and $20 million of that money would enhance the Centers for Disease Control rapid response and laboratory abilities.  Thompson said it would also include $20 million to support additional expert epidemiologists, adding that he thought every state should have at least one federally funded epidemiologist who has graduated from the Epidemic Intelligence Special Service Training Program at CDC. 

Another $50 million of the total proposal would strengthen and expand the Metropolitan Medical Response System.  There are 97 MMRS units currently established in large cities, and Thompson said he would like to raise the number to 122. 

The president was asking for $40 million to support early detection surveillance, including hooking all 50 states and local health departments up to the health alert network, Thompson said.  Another $15 million would go to increasing capacity in at least 78 state laboratories, and $62 million to enhance food safety.

Thompson said developing and approving new vaccines and therapies is also an important aspect of the administration’s plans.  He announced that the Food and Drug Administration had just approved two generic antibiotics for treating anthrax.  Thompson said the United States has the drugs it needs, and there was no need for people to stockpile drugs. 

Senator Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii) told the committee he would present three new bills to improve U.S. bioattack response capability.  One bill would focus on developing “tools to minimize the impact of bioterrorism” by reducing the number of victims and alerting authorities and medical personnel to an attack before symptoms show. 

The second bill would use existing emergency communications infrastructure, training programs and community partnerships within the country’s Veterans Affairs hospitals to train those hospital medical personnel, Akaka said.  The third measure, the Biosecurity Agricultural Terrorism Act of 2001, would enhance federal efforts to prevent and recover from agricultural terrorist acts, the senator said (Federal News Service, Oct. 17). 

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Ricin: Retrial For Accused Poison Maker

Senior U.S. District Judge James Michael ruled yesterday that Raymond Mettetal will stand trial for developing a biological weapon despite Mettetal’s argument that recent anthrax cases would prejudice the jury against him, Michael’s office announced yesterday.  Mettetal was convicted under a federal antiterrorism law after his 1995 arrest and given a 10-year sentence.  The conviction was reversed after Mettetal served almost half his sentence because evidence in the case had been seized illegally.  Now he will stand trial again Monday on the same charges. 

Mettetal claimed he would not receive a fair trial under current conditions in the United States.  “It defies common sense to think that a jury, operating in a climate of fear, could rationally distinguish between [anthrax] and ricin, the toxin that the defendant is accused of possessing,” his plea to postpone the retrial said. 

Mettetal was arrested in 1995 while carrying a hypodermic needle and wearing a disguise around the parking place of George Allen, a Vanderbilt University Medical Center official who Mettetal blamed for his failure to become a neurosurgeon.  Mettetal has admitted he made enough of the poison ricin to fill a Mason jar two fingers deep.  His poison was 30 times more potent than the sarin nerve gas used in the 1995 attack on the Tokyo subway, according to FBI officials.  One milligram of ricin can kill an adult if it is injected, Cornell University scientists said.  Ricin kills its victim by asphyxiation due to blood clots, the Washington Times reported. 

Mettetal’s case involves the largest stash of biological weapons ever prosecuted in the United States.  The only other convictions under the antiterrorism law (18 U.S.C. 175) involved five Minnesota men seized with ricin in 1992, according to the U.S. Sentencing Commission (Frank Murray, Washington Times, Oct. 18).

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