A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Types of Chemical Weapons

Albania
Albania

Albania once possessed a stockpile of weapons of mass destruction. This stockpile of chemical weapons included 16,678 kilograms (36,769 lb) of mustard agent, lewisite, adamsite, and chloroacetophenone. Albania was among the initial countries who signed the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in 1993.

image: aecom.com
Angola
Angola

Given this background, notwithstanding the optimism expressed by the then Director General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), Rogelio Pfirter, who stated at the 2007 Conference of the States Parties that Angola “fully supports” the CWC, Angola does not seem any closer to accession. .

source: idsa.in
China
China

Chemical and Biological Weapons China is widely reported to have active programs related to the development of chemical and biological weapons, although essentially no details of these programs have appeared in the open literature.

Choking Agents or Lung Toxicants
Choking Agents or Lung Toxicants

A chemical weapon agent (CWA) is a chemical substance whose toxic properties are used to kill, injure or incapacitate human beings. About 70 different chemicals have been used or stockpiled as chemical weapon agents during the 20th century. These agents may be in liquid, gas or solid form.

Cuba
Cuba

Cuba Special Weapons Cuba does not possess nuclear weapons, and there are no credible reports of Cuban efforts to acquire nuclear weapons. Cuba is not reported to possess chemical weapons, nor are there credible reports of Cuban possession of long range ballistic missiles.

source: fas.org
Cyanides
Cyanides

Hydrogen cyanide is usually included among the CW agents causing general poisoning. There is no confirmed information on this substance being used in chemical warfare. However, it has been reported that hydrogen cyanide was used by Iraq in the war against Iran and against the Kurds in northern Iraq during the 1980's.

source: opcw.org
Egypt
Egypt

Chemical weapons program Egypt's chemical weapons program is the most developed of its pursuit of developing a Weapons of Mass Destruction program though it is thought this reached its peak in the 1960s.

Ethiopia
Ethiopia

Ethiopia signed onto the Chemical Weapons Convention in 1993. The treaty requires each member state to declare whether it has any chemical weapons on its territory, no matter the age of the weapons or whom they belong to. That statement is a prerequisite to obtaining OPCW support in disposing of the munitions.

source: nti.org
GA - Tabun
GA - Tabun

Tabun or GA is an extremely toxic chemical substance. It is a clear, colorless, and tasteless liquid with a faint fruity odor. It is classified as a nerve agent because it fatally interferes with normal functioning of the mammalian nervous system.

image: en.valka.cz
GB - Sarin
GB - Sarin

Sarin, or NATO designation GB (G-series, 'B'), is a highly toxic synthetic organophosphorus compound. A colorless, odorless liquid, it is used as a chemical weapon due to its extreme potency as a nerve agent.

GD - Soman
GD - Soman

Soman (or GD, EA 1210, Zoman, PFMP, systematic name: O-Pinacolyl methylphosphonofluoridate), is an extremely toxic chemical substance. It is a nerve agent, interfering with normal functioning of the mammalian nervous system by inhibiting the enzyme cholinesterase.

GF - Cyclosarin
GF - Cyclosarin

Cyclosarin or GF (cyclohexyl methylphosphonofluoridate) is an extremely toxic substance used as a chemical weapon. It is a member of the G-series family of nerve agents, a group of chemical weapons discovered and synthesized by a German team led by Dr. Gerhard Schrader.

Incapacitating Agents (Such as Anticholinergic Compounds)
Incapacitating Agents (Such as Anticholinergic Compounds)

One of the anticholinergic compounds, ... to achieve a standard chemical incapacitating agent. ... use of incapacitating or deleriant drugs such as LSD ...

image: snipview.com
India
India

India informed the United Nations in May 2009 that it had destroyed its stockpile of chemical weapons in compliance with the international Chemical Weapons Convention. With this India has become third country after South Korea and Albania to do so.

Iran
Iran

Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, is not known to currently possess weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and has signed treaties repudiating the possession of weapons of mass destruction including the Biological Weapons Convention, the Chemical Weapons Convention, and the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Nerve Agents
Nerve Agents

The most important chemical reactions of nerve agents take place directly at the phosphorus atom. The P-X bond is easily broken by nucleophilic reagents, such as water or hydroxyl ions (alkali). In aqueous solution at neutral pH the nerve agents decompose slowly, whereas the reaction is greatly accelerated following the addition of alkali. The result is a non-toxic phosphoric acid.

source: opcw.org
Vesicating or Blistering Agents
Vesicating or Blistering Agents

For many chemical warfare agents, doctors can only treat the symptoms they produce. But specific, well-established antidotes are available for nerve agent and cyanide exposures. Lab tests are not widely available in hospitals to rapidly confirm exposure to chemical agents.

VX - Methylphosphonothioic Acid
VX - Methylphosphonothioic Acid

In 1969, the U.S. government cancelled its chemical weapons programs, banned the production of VX in the United States, and began the destruction of its stockpiles of agents by a variety of methods.