Introduction

Chemical weapons preceded nuclear weapons by some fifty years, and remain today more readily available as weapons of mass destruction for countries that lack the technological capacity to produce nuclear weapons for deterrence purposes. Yet the proscription against their use is the oldest weapons ban of the modern age. In many respects, therefore, the conceptual task in relating the national interest of a country to the planetary interest of humankind is as pertinent and challenging as with nuclear weapons for the major powers.