Chemical Warfare Persuasive Reasearch Essay

The chemical weapon warfare has ever since the ancient ages been elicited great debate among various scholars and military expert. Some people greatly support the use of chemical as a weapon while at the same time, different group greatly condemn the warfare. In the article “it would be very well if we could avoid it” by Thomas Faith, the author discusses different opinions used by those supporting and those opposing chemical warfare. And General Pershing prospective on chemical warfare during and after his military career. This paper gives an analysis of the reasons for and against chemical warfare.

Poison Gas/Chemical Warfare usage, while not harming physical structures preventing the collateral damage of homes and buildings, causes a high casualty rate in all living things. It is indescriminate and robs life equally be they related or not to a target of military or strategic importance. Gas usage has been widely considered uncivilized, but the French resorted to its usage in August, 1914 during the first World War in an attempt to rout the Germans. Unfortunately, the Germans were the first to give gas warfare serious development and it became used extensively before the war was over. On the battlefield it prooved effective in eliminating hostile threats in an inhumane way, but this does not make it morally acceptable. In more recent times ISIS has been reported to using Poison Gas in Syria against both military and civilians in an indescriminate manner. This sort of attack ignores international laws as well as inhumanely cause widespread harm. In this day and age, this sort of attack is unnecessary and is why it was outlawed in the first place even back during the first World War.

Chemical warfare, while horrible, proved to be unwieldy and unpredictable, and relatively easy to counter. After some limited successes against unprepared opponents, the use of chemical gas had very little tactical benefit; the recognition of this limited utility is that after widespread use in 1915 - except for the short-lived effects of the introduction of mustard gas in 1917 - gas was abandoned by both sides as an effective tactic.

Frist of all, in the Second Battle of Ypres, the Germans introduced the first use of poisonous gas. When poison gas first introduced it was a popular weapon choice and would be the weapon to change the outcome of the war. The Germans surprisingly attack the Allies, where the used lethal chloride gas against them. The gas was deadly and killed over one thousand soldiers. (1) It also allowed a significant advanced for the Germans in the war. The gas usage continued to grow throughout the war. In the end, many Allied countries started chemical weapons research. Gas warfare became common but effective actions were used to protect the troops. After World War 1, poison was use for a while but in today’s war it is no longer allowed. Instead of poisonous gas, chemical warfare is used. Chemical weapons come in a variety of forms and are used for several different techniques.

France was the first to introduce a chemical component for warfare called tear gas. It was utilized on the German Army in August, 1914. Although, it was not used to kill the enemy, it did incapacitate them and left them unable to defend their positions. Tear gas caused irritation in the mouth, eyes, and throat. The use of tear gas in trench warfare was not very effective.

I believe that the use of Chemical weapons by groups such as Aum Shinrikyo and the Iraqi government in the late 1980's has had a huge impact on the United States' counter terrorism preparedness. The United States has continued to make improvements to our WMD defense programs ever since the first use of chemical weapons, specifically Chlorine and Phosgene gasses, during WWI. The U.S. continued to improve its defense at that point by designing masks that were able to counter such weapons. As times have changed and evolved, so has the defense programs and equipment of our country. Since the use of chemical weapons by groups like Aum Shinrikyo and the Iraqi Government you can see even the smallest the changes in our defense, such as with the

The countries were not justified for their use of chemical weapons in World War I because of its mass destruction of humans and to the environment. Although it did help weaken the enemy, there were many other weapons that could have been used. The addition of chemical weapons only made it easier for more soldiers to be unreasonably killed in large numbers. Even if the soldiers did survive, they would develop cancers and many health problems. Because the wind can carry the remnants of the gases, it could travel back to the the area where it came from or possibly into civilian life. Either way, everyone was at risk of inhaling the gases, not just the enemy. Furthermore, the use of chemical weapons caused damage to the environment, contaminating

The Germans marked an epoch with chemical warfare during World War I. The horror that opposing countries experienced when being exposed to the merciless gas forced them to begin to concoct their own weapons, so they could compete with the Germans and their allies. David Cook, author of Chemical Warfare: World War I, explains the purpose of chemical weapons during the war was to cause enemy casualties, enfeeble the opposing troops’ ability to retaliate, briefly block the land that they are no longer able to defend in order to escape, and create chaos in the enemy’s lines. Chemical warfare allowed attackers using this weapon to have a major advantage over their enemies, resulting in the successful execution of missions and casualties with its toxicity. The strength and versatility was not the only cause of chaos during the introduction of chemical weapons by the Germans during World War I; twenty-six countries had made an agreement previous to the war to prohibit the use of asphyxiating or deleterious gases (“Hague Peace Conferences (1899 and

Chemical Warfare is not the same as nuclear warfare, or the same as biological warfare. Chemical warfare involves using the deadly properties of chemical substances as weapons.Most weapons used in chemical warfare are considered to be“weapons of mass destruction” or, WMDs, and are not considered to be conventional weapons. Chemical warfare does not depend upon explosive force to neutralize targets; it depends on the chemical properties of a chemical agent weaponized. Defoliants are an example.They are used to kill off vegetation and deny its use of cover by the enemy. “Defoliants can also be used against agriculture and livestock to promote hunger and starvation but with protective equipment, and decontamination measures, the effects of

There are thousands of injured and unknown dead at this time in Tokyo, Japan. This is a likely headline from the day Aum Shinrikyo launched a successful chemical weapon attack on the subway system in Tokyo. In this paper, it going to show the full extent of the threat they pose to the world. It will also talk about how CBRN agent used by them is still a threat to US by current terrorist groups in the world. The threat of CBRN weapons are never going way and in future will become worse with the advancement in technologies.

War, according to the Oxford Dictionary, is “A state of armed conflict between different nations or states or different groups within a nation or state” (citation). War truly does bring out the worst of in the people involved, because in war the objective is to kill or capture enough of the opposing sides’ soldiers to show that your side is superior. Both sides will take any measures necessary to win, a few examples of this being Mustard gas, Ricin, Agent Orange, and Sarin . When guns and other weapons will not cut it, that’s when in the mind of the governments that chemical warfare became necessary . Since these four chemicals and many more have been used throughout history, the Chemical Warfare Convention banned all forms of chemical weapons, due to the lasting effects of the chemicals on both nations and individuals of those nations. The way the CWC defines a chemical weapon is a toxic chemical or its precursor that can cause death, injury, temporary incapacitation or sensory irritation through its chemical action.

Chemical weapons are toxic gases, which use in the wars such as World War 1. Chemical weapons used in First World War and they killed a lot of people even children. In addition, chemical weapons are unless color, so people can’t see them. Also, most of people who died through the First World War were civilians. Therefore, who were responsible about them? In addition, people who survived had dangerous and permanent diseases such as cancer, asthma … etc. Even people’s genes effected by these toxic gases and they cause a lot of genetic problems that appeared in a second generation. Even soldiers who were pushed to this war. Then, they died or effected who were responsible about their families. In addition chemical weapons burned a lot of trees and they changed plant characteristics. Also, these gases can react with others to change air and weather characteristics. Therefore, chemical weapons effect on our

Chemical weapons and their use is one of the most important issues facing the world today. Not only is the use of such weapons highly controversial, but also the very idea of such weapons of mass destruction being in the hands of dangerous leaders. Next to nuclear weapons they are the most feared, and the prospect of these weapons not only concerns people, but also frightens them. As a result of these fears, America has entered a new war that could bring devastating effects upon our world. It is a very sensitive topic among many countries, and is out of hand primarily because of the introduction of chemical weapons to the world in the First World War. Many people have the same feelings

The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) defines chemical weapons as “Any toxic chemical or its precursor that can cause death, injury, temporary incapacitation or sensory irritation through its chemical action” (Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, n.d.). Chemical weapons have been around for a long time since ancient times, in fact some chemical weapons such as chlorine were frequently used during World War I (War of nerves, 2006) (Pitschmann, 2014). Over the years with the increase of industrialization and the advancements in technology chemical weapons have become easier to make, since the materials needed to make chemical weapons are now more accessible to the public and industries (War of nerves, 2006). This not only has allowed some states to improve their chemical warfare programs, but it has also increased the proliferation and it has allowed terrorists to be able to developed chemical weapons and conduct successful chemical terrorists attacks (War of nerves, 2006). Chlorine can be obtained easily and a chemical attack using chlorine can have serious consequences because it could affect many people (Pitschmann, 2014).

This is clear violation of Rule 74 of the Hague Declaration. The use of chemical weapons is prohibited in international armed conflicts in a series of treaties including the Hague Declaration. The prohibited chemical weapons include Azphyxiating Gases, Chlorine and Phosphorus etc. There another international treaties relating prohibition of chemical weapons are the Geneva Gas Protocol, The Chemical Weapons Convention and the Statute of the International Criminal Court.