Mauritania joins the Biological Weapons Convention

Earlier this year, on 28 January, the Islamic Republic of Mauritania acceded to the Biological Weapons Convention (the BWC – formally named the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological [Biological] and Toxin Weapons and on their Destruction).

The news was announced on 4 February by the United Kingdom, one of the three depositories of the BWC along with the United States and Russia. By acceding to the convention, Mauritania formally commits never to develop, produce, acquire, transfer, retain, stockpile or use biological weapons. While the state was not suspected of pursuing a clandestine biological weapons programme, its recent accession remains a meaningful development as it brings additional trust in the peaceful nature of its activities, and strengthens the global move towards non-proliferation.
Mauritania joining the BWC is also an important step towards the convention being globally implemented, as it now has 172 states parties. Prior to Mauritania, the most recent state to accede had been Myanmar, on 1 December last year, and there are encouraging signs that Andorra and Angola may soon follow suit.

Biological Weapons Convention Meeting of Experts starts today

The 2014 Biological Weapons Convention Meeting of Experts will be held in the Palais des Nations from 4 to 8 August 2014. The meeting will open at 10:00 on Monday 4 August in Room XVIII and is expected to close on Friday 8 August.

The Meeting of States Parties will be chaired by Ambassador Urs Schmid of Switzerland. In accordance with the decision of the Seventh Review Conference, the meeting will consider three standing agenda items (cooperation and assistance, with a particular focus on strengthening cooperation and assistance under Article X; review of developments in the field of science and technology related to the Convention; and strengthening national implementation), as well as the biennial item of How to strengthen implementation of Article VII.

More information about the Meeting of Experts can be found HERE.

ISS Paper 258: Biological Weapons Convention: Confidence, the prohibition and learning from the past

Confidence in the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) needs to be strengthened. When thinking about how to do this, hard questions must be asked about why confidence building measures aren't working and what else is needed to establish and maintain confidence between states parties. This paper reflects on how those involved in the BWC process collectively assess issues affecting the convention. It focuses on the prevalence of defensive reasoning, which inhibits robust enquiry and encourages anti-learning practices. It argues that instead of more of the same, alternative types of discussions needed to be nurtured.

Authors: Brian Rappert and Chandre Gould

Click here to download Paper No 258

The authors are grateful for a research grant award from the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl), and the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC). The ISS is grateful for support from the following members of the ISS Partnership Forum: the governments of Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the USA

The Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention Meeting of Experts begins in Geneva

The Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) 2012 Meeting of Experts will be held in the Palais des Nations from 16 to 20 July 2012.
The meeting will open at 10:00 on Monday 16 July in Room XVIII.

The Meeting of Experts will be chaired by Ambassador Boujemâa Delmi of Algeria. In accordance with the decision of the Seventh Review Conference, the Meeting of Experts will address standing agenda items on:

• Cooperation and assistance, with a particular focus on strengthening cooperation and assistance under Article X;

• Review of developments in the field of science and technology related to the Convention;

• Strengthening national implementation.

The Seventh Review Conference decided the Meeting of Experts will also discuss how to enable fuller participation in the Confidence-building Measures (CBMs).

For all documents related to the Meeting of Experts visit the UN Office at Geneva website HERE. 

Burundi has become the 165th State Party to the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC). The country deposited its instrument of ratification in London on 18 October 2011. 15 African States still have to join the BWC.

Source: http://www.unog.ch/80256EE600585943/(httpPages)/87CF9BFD24A8D05FC1257574004B285B?OpenDocument

Mozambique ratifies Biological Weapons Convention

Mozambique deposited its instrument of accession in London on 29 March 2011, becoming a State Party to the BWC and bringing the membership of the treaty to 164. The President-designate of the Seventh Review Conference of the BWC, Ambassador Paul van den IJssel (Netherlands), warmly welcomed the accession, saying "I congratulate the Government of Mozambique on taking this important step to join the efforts of the international community to strengthen international security by ensuring that biological science and technology is used only for the benefit of people around the world". The President-designate added that by acceding to the BWC Mozambique was setting an example for other African states which are yet to join the treaty. "Mozambique's action demonstrates that the treaty is relevant and provides concrete benefits for security and development, especially in Africa", he said. "I look forward to welcoming the delegation of Mozambique to the Seventh Review Conference as a State Party to the BWC, and to working with Mozambique to further the aims of the treaty in Africa and around the world".

Source: http://www.unog.ch/80256EE600585943/(httpPages)/87CF9BFD24A8D05FC1257574004B285B?OpenDocument