HL Deb 31 July 1986 vol 479 c1091WA
Lord Jenkins of Putney

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether all allegations of the use of chemical and biological weapons by the USSR in Afghanistan and Cambodia have now been disproved or discounted.

Baroness Young

There have been allegations of the use of chemical or biological agents in areas of Afghanistan and South-East Asia under the control of communist governments for a number of years. Independent on-site investigation of these allegations has not been possible. As my honourable friend the Minister of State for the Armed Forces said in another place on 19th May, it is our view on the basis of epidemiological evidence that chemical warfare attacks probably did take place in South-East Asia. We are, however, unable to identify the agent (or agents) used.