There is a little known piece of paper formed by the United Nations called the Biological Weapons Convention. It was formed in April 1972 as part of a disarmament, production and stockpiling effort. This document came into force on 26 March 1975 and several conferences have been held over the years to review and amend the Convention. To date, there are one hundred and ten state parties and one hundred and sixty-eight state parties. There are four member custodian governments: the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain, Northern Ireland and the United States of America. The main goal of the Biological Weapons Convention is to reduce the global threat of these types of weapons and prevent them from spreading to cause great harm. To achieve this, they gather information from all sides on the development and stockpiles of these weapons, as well as the research they are doing to combat and develop antibiotics for these weapons of mass destruction. These actions fall in line with the ban signed in Geneva on June 17, 1927. The ban against these weapons was intended to mitigate the ravages of their horrors during a time of war or civil unrest. The Geneva ban was introduced when the Germans used biological weapons during the First World War. The Germans used their knowledge of these weapons to gain the upper hand because their enemies were not prepared for it. Since it was the first time they had been introduced on such a scale, large numbers of soldiers fell ill or died from exposure. What is a biological weapon? Biological weapons are complex systems that deliver pathogenic organisms or toxins to harm or kill humans, animals or plants. (Schneider, 2014) In...... middle of paper...... true and binding thing then their use would never have happened. Only after evidence that a weapon of mass destruction had been used did the United Nations intervene to enforce the convention. So, in conclusion, there will always be a loophole in the system, if a party wants to have and use them. For example, having a biological research department in a party's defense department. The only way to do a valid and conclusive study on the effects would be to actually use the biotoxin as a weapon of some kind. Works Cited (n.d.). Retrieved from the United Nations Office at Geneva: http://www.unog.chChemical & Biological Warfare Studies No 19. (nd).Schneider, BR (2014). Encyclopedia Britannica.Sims, N.A. (n.d.). Studies on chemical and biological warfare n. 19. In NA Sims, The Ecolution od Biological Disarmament.Sims, NA (n.d.). The evolution of