The World : Bonn Acts to Halt Iran Deal

West Germany will try to stop the shipment from India to Iran of 257 tons of a chemical used to make deadly mustard gas, a deal arranged by a West German firm, a government spokesman said. Bonn began investigating the firm, Rheineisen Chemical Products of Duesseldorf, after Washington alleged that it coordinated the sale to Iran of the Indian-made chemical, thionyl chloride. Government spokesman Herbert Schmuelling said the chemical cargo is still stored in India but scheduled to be shipped to Iran next month. However, in a separate announcement, the Rheineisen company said that it has canceled the contract to supply the chemical to Iran and that the delivery will not be made.