In what could be a major diplomatic breakthrough for the United States and Syria, the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has agreed to disclose the location of its chemical weapons stockpile, end production, and put the weapons under international control.
Though this could be a promising step toward avoiding military intervention, securing these very dangerous agents is no small task.
According to a French intelligence report, the Syrian regime has one of the world’s largest stockpiles, with more than 1,000 tons of chemical agents under its control.
Joining the program to discuss how one may secure dangerous chemical weapons is Ambassador Richard Butler, an expert on nuclear arms control and disarmament. Ambassador Butler ran the United Nations weapons inspection organization in Iraq in the late 1990’s. He is currently a distinguished scholar of International Peace and Security at Penn State’s School of International Affairs