International trade in biological weapons

Trade in biological warfare technology

Nature

The Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention bars development and stockpiling of such agents. But that prohibition applies only to states, not private individuals or companies who can legally develop, produce and export biological weapons.

Background

International trade in biological weapons emerged as a global concern during the Cold War, when intelligence reports revealed clandestine exchanges of weaponized pathogens between states and non-state actors. The 1972 Biological Weapons Convention highlighted the issue, but subsequent discoveries of covert programs and black-market dealings in the 1990s and early 2000s underscored the persistent, transnational nature of this threat, prompting intensified international monitoring and calls for stricter enforcement mechanisms.

Incidence

According to a 1998 report, the prestigious Institut Pasteur in Paris had furnished Iraq with an attenuated strain of the so-called "Stern" vaccine in 1986-87. The American Type Culture Collection, in Rockvillem, Maryland, provided Iraq with three strains of the anthrax bacillus of the "vollum" type, which can cause anthrax. Austrian, Swedish and Swiss companies, which were not identified in the report, provided Iraq with fermentation tanks that can be used to grow germs.

Claim

International trade in biological weapons is a grave and urgent global threat. The proliferation of these weapons endangers countless innocent lives, destabilizes international security, and undermines decades of progress in arms control. Allowing such trade to persist risks catastrophic consequences, including uncontrollable pandemics and bioterrorism. The international community must act decisively to eliminate this illicit trade and hold perpetrators accountable, prioritizing humanity’s safety over profit or political gain. This issue demands immediate, unwavering attention.