The French Biological Weapons Program - Deadly Cultures: Biological Weapons Since 1945 - page 123

up for the CIEECB a summary of past activities in the field of biological
aggression and outlined the advances made:
we have carried out studies on production, conservation, and dispersal
of biological agents. With regard to production, we have created in the
laboratory a Bacillus anthracis and botulinum toxin in raw, purified, and
lyophilized state. Concerning conservation, work has been carried out
on these two agents subject to variable factors (temperature, aeration,
pH, and storage methods, including, for example, botulinum toxin was
kept in a lyophilized state for one year). Finally, we have studied the dis-
persal of bacteria in general, using cooled powder gas projectiles of 120-
millimeter mortars, antipersonnel mines, self-propelled missiles, explo-
sion in general. Studies on the aerosolized delivery of toxins and poten-
tial contamination through ground and particles are in progress. 49
At the meeting on 16 May 1963, the CIEECB chairman, in response to
ministerial directives, laid out a future CBW program, marking out two
periods: one short-term, covering 1963-1964, and one longer-term, cov-
ering 1965-1969. In doing so he stressed that it was vital that a war doc-
trine bringing such arms into play be defined before any biological arma-
ment plan was enacted. The chairman then declared his opinion that the
country should first equip itself with protective materials, including of-
fensive weapons designed to wage tactical war on a European battlefield.
It thus appears that only tactical utilization of BW was envisaged. The ob-
jective was for the laboratories to prioritize the development of biological
incapacitants. It was also decided that a budget for these additional proj-
ects should be drawn up as quickly as possible and submitted to the min-
ister. For 1962, the funds allocated to the BW program came to FF5 mil-
lion; for 1963, and FF5.7 million. 50
In June 1963 the CIEECB was given new directives by the Conseil de
Défense. The commission was instructed to conduct biological studies
into incapacitating armaments rather than into lethal agents. The SGTEB
president wrote to all the heads of all the collaborating research organiza-
tions informing them that from now on they were “to plan to extend
their studies in 1964 under the new terms for the program and to partici-
pate in it according to their abilities and resources. Given that research on
alert, detection, protection, and decontamination is being carried out ac-