The European Commission (EC) adopted on June 24 a policy package on chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) security.

Terror is not new to India. Modern man is living in a violent world and undeniably, societal threshold of violence is rising. As a result, ‘People’ are already inoculated against increasing dosage levels of violence. The need to spill more blood and launch more spectacular attacks to capture headlines is becoming a compulsion because of heightened security against traditional terrorist acts. Consequently, the post modern terrorist is technology-driven and is exploiting the openness of information and availability of cheap technology.

Acardinal principle of India’s nuclear doctrine is No First Use (NFU). It is articulated in a press release of January 4, 2003 on the review of operationalisation of India’s nuclear doctrine by the Cabinet Committee on Security.

While WMD hold the centre stage of international politics, its victims often suffer from neglect and insensitivity. Dr. Shehriyar Khateri, a physician, works determinedly for the cause of chemical weapons victim in Iran. He spoke to our Assistant Editor, Monalisa at Bangalore and responded to the questions via E-mail. An excerpt-

1. What is the NGO SCWVS about?

The Society for Chemical Weapons Victims Support (SCWVS) is a non- Governmental, non-Profit organisation, established in 2002.

The spectre of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) warfare has led to the formation of global disarmament architecture. The Chemical Weapons convention (CWC) forms an important part of this architecture. It is seen as an important part of the international law supporting disarmament and non-proliferation concerning weapons of mass destruction. It is the only international agreement that essitates complete and verifiable eradication of an entire category of WMD.