Former U.N. weapons inspector presents pope with world weapons report

Published: 2006-06-15

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The former U.N. weapons inspector monitoring Iraq, Hans Blix, met with Pope Benedict XVI and presented him with a report on the world's arsenal of weapons of mass destruction. At the end of the pope's June 14 general audience in St. Peter's Square, the pope greeted and spoke with the 77-year-old Swedish diplomat for a few minutes on the steps of the basilica, before greeting other pilgrims. Blix was in Rome as part of a world tour presenting a report titled "Weapons of Terror," which outlines ways the world can reduce the dangers of weapons of mass destruction. The 227-page report was the result of an independent, two-year study conducted by the Weapons of Mass Destruction Commission, headed by Blix. The report concludes that as long as nations stockpile chemical, biological and nuclear arms "there is a high risk that they will one day be used by design or by accident," he told reporters in Rome June 13.

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