Chemical Warfare Agents

Abstract

Chemical weapons are weapons that exploit the toxicity of chemicals to bring about death or harm. The toxic chemicals on which chemical weapons are based are known as chemical warfare agents. This article starts by providing some definitions of chemical weapons and chemical warfare agents as well an overview of key toxicology concepts and some notes on the physicochemical properties of the agents. Subsequently, it illustrates the chemistry, biochemistry, and medical countermeasures of the main classes of chemical warfare agents, namely vesicants, choking agents, blood agents, irritants, nerve agents, and centrally incapacitating agents.

Lists of Chemical Warfare Agents and Precursors from International Nonproliferation Frameworks: Structural Annotation and Chemical Fingerprint Analysis

“…The toxic chemicals on which CWs are based are known as chemical warfare agents (CWAs). Based on their mechanism of action, CWAs can be divided into different classes, including vesicants, choking agents, chemosensory irritants, blood agents, and central incapacitating agents. − …”

“…Notoriously, CWschiefly irritants, choking agents, and vesicantswere widely used in World War I. More sophisticated CWs, for example, nerve agents and incapacitating agents, were subsequently developed prior to and during World War II and during the Cold War. − …”

“…A Novichok nerve agent known as A-234 was used for the attempted assassination of Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury, England, in March 2018. A few months later, a woman resident of the nearby town of Amesbury, who came into contact with a discarded faux perfume bottle containing the same agent, tragically died . A nerve agent belonging to the Novichok family, according to German authorities, was also used for the attempted assassination of Alexei Navalny in August 2020 .…”

“…Assisting anyone in engaging in activities that violate the convention is also forbidden. The CWC, which is implemented by the Hague-based Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), enjoys almost universal adoption, counting a total of 193 state parties. ,, The AG is an informal forum of countries that coordinate export control regulations for dual-use items, that is, items that can be used for civilian purposes as well as for the production of weapons, including precursors for the synthesis of CWAs. The group was established in 1984, out of concern for the use of CWs by Iraq in the Iran–Iraq War, and currently counts 42 participant countries, plus the European Union.…”

“…Indeed, the CWC includes within the scope of its definition of CWs “ any chemical (emphasis added) which through its chemical action on life processes can cause death, temporary incapacitation, or permanent harm to humans or animals” (CWC, Article II, paragraph 2) . Hence, any weapon designed to bring about death, temporary incapacitation, or permanent harm through the toxic properties of chemicals is to be considered a CW, and any toxic chemical at the basis of such weapons is to be considered a CWA. , For instance, chlorine, which has been extensively used as a CW in the Syrian Civil War, is not covered by the CWC schedules due to its extensive legitimate uses, which would make its control impractical. Nonetheless, the intentional employment of chlorine to bring about harm or death undoubtedly qualifies as CW use and constitutes a violation of the CWC prohibitions …”