The Chemical and Biological Non-Proliferation Regime after COVID-19

The COVID-19 global pandemic and recent cases of chemical weapon use (e.g. in Syria and against the Skripals and Alexey Navalny) have demonstrated the multifaceted nature of biological and chemical threats that States face in the twenty-first century. These threats have also underscored the importance of strengthening the international norms against the hostile misuse of chemical and biological sciences enshrined in the 1975 Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) and the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). But the centrepiece of international efforts to prevent the misuse of modern chemistry and biology - The Chemical Weapons Convention and the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention - rarely come to the attention of Parliament and public.

In December 2020, the Parliament Joint Committee on National Security Strategy published its First Report for the Session 2019-21 on 'Biosecurity and national security'. This report focused on the difficulties of integrating the various means of governance within the United Kingdom but noted that: “Future biological risks to the UK will evolve rapidly, originating within or beyond its borders. These prospects encompass other serious disease outbreak, but also the ‘slow burn’ risk of anti-microbial resistance and reducing barriers to the (accidental or deliberate) spread of harmful biological substances.”

In 2020, we started a series of projects on “Strengthening the Biological and Chemical Weapons Conventions” aimed to provide civil society input to biological and chemical security before BTWC 9th Review Conference in 2021 and the 5th Review Conference of the CWC in 2023. One of these projects is to present our newest research to lawmakers and the general public. This project was selected by London Metropolitan University for funding via the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Strategic Priorities Fund. The outcome of this project is formed as a Report to the Parliament which is the topic of the webinar today.

In this webinar, we will discuss the difficulties of integrating the various means of governance external to the UK in relation to the Chemical and Biological Non-Proliferation Regime. We also review the state of the BTWC and CWC and identify practical opportunities to strengthen these critical Conventions and guarantee their relevance against the backdrop of rapid scientific and technological advancement and growing international instability. We will also carry out several interviews to get feedback on this report and webinar so that we can establish strong future connection with the Parliament and public on this important issue.

Programme:

• 16:50: Guests admitted to the webinar

• 17:00: WELCOMING & OPENING REMARKS

Lijun Shang, London Metropolitan University, UK

• 17:05: The BTWC: Science and Technology, National Implementation and Assistance

Tatyana Novossiolova, Center for the Study of Democracy, Bulgaria

• 17:15: The BTWC: Cooperation and Institutional Strengthening

Simon Whitby, University of Bradford, UK

• 17:25: The CWC: Novichocks & Syria

Brett Edwards, University of Bath, UK

• 17:35: The CWC: ICAs, RCAs & Means of Delivery

Michael Crowley, University of Bradford, UK

• 17:45: New Way of Raising Awareness: Cartoon

Malcolm Dando, University of Bradford, UK

• 17:50: QUESTIONS AND DISCUSSIONS

Lijun Shang, London Metropolitan University, UK

• 18:00: CLOSING REMARKS

Lijun Shang, London Metropolitan University, UK

Speakers:

Professor Lijun Shang, School of Human Sciences, London Metropolitan University

Professor Lijun Shang’s research focus on ion channel in health and disease and clinical applications of biomaterials. In recent years, he has incorporated studies of the social impact of the advances in the life sciences within his research work, particularly on biochemical weapon science convergence. Since 2020, he has taken a leading role in a series of projects on “Strengthening the Biological and Chemical Weapons Conventions” that aim to provide civil society input to biological and chemical security and to set up a biological security education roadmap.

Professor Malcolm Dando, Leverhulme Trust Emeritus Fellow, University of Bradford

Professor Malcolm Dando trained originally as a biologist (BSc and PhD at St. Andrews University, Scotland). After post-doctoral studies in the United States (University of Michigan and University of Oregon) he held UK Ministry of Defence-funded fellowships in Operational Research at the University of Sussex during the 1970s. Since then he has worked on arms control and disarmament, particularly on chemical and biological issues (DSc University of Bradford). In recent years this work has been focused on awareness-raising and education of life scientists in regard to dual use and biosecurity.It has not been easy to raise awareness of biological security issues so we are exploring new means of explain these complex issues. Malcolm’s presentation will be of one such approach – by the use of cartoons.

Dr Tatyana Novossiolova, Center for the Study of Democracy, Bulgaria

Dr Tatyana Novossiolova is Research Fellow with the Law Program of the Center for the Study of Democracy, Bulgaria where she conducts research and analysis on policy sustainability in the area of counter-terrorism, WMD non-proliferation, and the governance of emerging technologies. She has developed a biological security training manual that has been translated into several different languages. Tatyana is a current member of the Equity-Focused Committee of the International Federation of Biosafety Associations (IFBA). She completed her PhD studies at the University of Bradford, UK on a Wellcome Trust scholarship. Her talk focuses on the need for an in-depth implementation of the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention, in order to prevent the hostile misuse of cutting-edge life sciences advances and ensure an effective counter to deliberate disease.

Dr Simon Whitby, School of Social Sciences, University of Bradford

Dr Simon Whitby works at the interface between the life science and national security communities to address the threat of deliberate disease in the context of rapidly advancing science and dual-use technology. Dr Whitby’s work has focused on contributing to the discourse on dual-use biological security and bioethics and thus on raising awareness at government, civil society, life science and industry levels about the ethical, legal and social implications of life science research. Significantly he has developed novel and innovative online distance learning Masters level train-the-trainer programme and short courses in Applied Dual-Use Biological Security and Bioethics.Whitby will discuss Cooperation and Assistance and Institutional Strengthening of the BWC respectively where States Parties have the right to enjoy science and technology for peaceful purposes, and where discussion amongst States Parties has focussed on the benefits and challenges of a comprehensive approach versus an approach that relies on individual measures.

Dr Michael Crowley, School of Social Sciences, University of Bradford

Dr Michael Crowley is Honorary Visiting Senior Research Fellow at Bradford University and he also works as Research Associate with the Omega Research Foundation. He has worked for 30 years on arms control, security and human rights issues, including as Executive Director of VERTIC, and with Amnesty International, BASIC, and the Arias Foundation. Employing a Holistic Arms Control methodology, his current academic research examines how relevant international law, arms control instruments and civil society action can best regulate emerging technologies, particularly in the life and chemical sciences, and prevent their hostile misuse by State and non-State actors. His talk focuses on the consequences of the current collective failure of CWC States to effectively regulate riot control agents and their means of delivery, or to address the threat of State weaponization of toxic chemicals that act on the central nervous system.

Dr Brett Edwards, Politics, Languages and International Relations Dept, University of Bath

Dr Brett Edwards is Senior Lecturer in Security and Public Policy and his research focuses on the politics and ethics of technology- with a particular focus on biological and chemical weapons. His most recent publication is ‘Insecurity and Emerging Biotechnology: Governing Misuse Potential’ (2019) Palgrave Macmillan, a work which examines the complex and ambiguous challenges raised by advances in science and technology for both national and international security. Dr Edwards has been involved in a number of education, awareness raising and horizon scanning initiatives in this issue area.His talk will examine the global political fall-out of the use of chemical weapons in Syria as part of chemical warfare, as well as the use of chemical weapons for assination in three recent high profile cases. The talk focuses on the limited areas of progress which have been made, in the context of a fraught political environment.

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