US Mission Geneva

American greatness is a fact but not an entitlement. It cannot be taken for granted. It must be demonstrated and earned by every generation.

We’ve weathered great storms together. I know this is a time of uncertainty. I ask you not to be diminished by the crosscurrents that are flowing through the world today because I’m convinced – and I really believe this – I see the world – I see the glass as definitively half full, not half empty.

For more than four decades, the Biological Weapons Convention has embodied international will against the use of disease as a weapon. No nation claims that biological weapons are legitimate or admits pursuing them, and we are all safer for it. This norm remains strong, as does the U.S. commitment to work with other nations to combat this threat, despite the less than satisfactory outcome of the Convention’s Eighth Review Conference in Geneva last week.

The Thirtieth Session of the Special Verification Commission under the Treaty Between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Elimination of Their Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles (INF Treaty) took place in Geneva, Switzerland, November 15-16.

This Conference should state unambiguously that use of biological weapons under any circumstance is unacceptable, that allegations of such use should be investigated promptly, and that those responsible for the use of such weapons will be held accountable.

Acting Under Secretary Countryman will join the U.S. Delegation to the 8th Biological Weapons Review Conference in Geneva, Switzerland, November 7-10.

The United States shares the concerns that have been expressed by other UN Member States regarding the threat of chemical and biological terrorism.

A treaty banning nuclear weapons will not lead to any further reductions because it will not include the states that possess nuclear weapons.

The Foreign Ministers look forward to the Eighth Review Conference of the Convention in November this year agreeing on substantive measures that will significantly strengthen the Convention and contribute in a measurable way to reducing the threat of biological agents being used as weapons.