Global Security Newswire

NATO this week hosted discussions by roughly 50 experts on preparations for dealing with terrorist attacks involving chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear weapons (see GSN, Aug. 5).

The three-day session that began Tuesday in the Czech city of Brno offered participants the opportunity to exchange knowledge on WMD "resources" available to extremists and on equipment to guard against unconventional weapons agents, according to a NATO release.

"The spread of WMD and their means of delivery, and the possibility that terrorists acquire them, are the principal threats facing the alliance over the next 10-15 years," said Polish Ambassador Jacek Bylica, who heads the WMD Nonproliferation Center at NATO's Emerging Security Challenges Division.

"The safety and security of existing CBRN materials remain tentative in many corners of the world. There are indications that terrorists intend to acquire them for malicious purposes," the press release quoted Bylica as saying.

Measures for combating the threat could establishing WMD defense teams that could be deployed quickly and better sharing of information by NATO, its member nations and other global entities, Bylica said.

The 3-year-old NATO Joint Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense Center of Excellence arranged the meeting as part of the alliance's Defense Against Terrorism Program of Work (NATO release, Oct. 14).