Statement to the Biological Weapons Convention Review Conference from the Council on Strategic Risks

The Council on Strategic Risks emphasizes the urgency of international cooperation within the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BWC) to counter biological threats. The organization identifies three priority areas for future work: engaging the private sector to manage risks from synthetic biology and the bioeconomy, establishing shared standards and transparency for high safety-level laboratories (BSL-3 and BSL-4), and improving early warning and rapid response capacities for biological threats from all sources, drawing on models from the Chemical Weapons Convention and Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

• The Council on Strategic Risks argues that the current international environment is characterized by falling transparency and trust among nations, and that advances in life sciences have complicated the implementation and compliance of the convention.
• To strengthen the BWC, the Council proposes building partnerships with the private sector to identify threats in the life sciences, particularly as synthetic biology and the bioeconomy expand.
• The organization highlights the need for improved transparency and shared standards for high safety-level laboratories, noting that many countries intend to increase their number of BSL-3 and BSL-4 facilities.
• The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated a need for better early warning and rapid response capacities for biological threats, which could be informed by the implementation approaches of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Chemical Weapons Convention.

APA

The Council on Strategic Risks (2022). Statement to the Biological Weapons Convention Review Conference from the Council on Strategic Risks. https://councilonstrategicrisks.org/2022/11/30/statement-to-the-biological-weapons-convention-review-conference-from-the-council-on-strategic-risks/

Chicago

The Council on Strategic Risks. Statement to the Biological Weapons Convention Review Conference from the Council on Strategic Risks. 2022. https://councilonstrategicrisks.org/2022/11/30/statement-to-the-biological-weapons-convention-review-conference-from-the-council-on-strategic-risks/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=The Council on Strategic Risks |title=Statement to the Biological Weapons Convention Review Conference from the Council on Strategic Risks |date=30 November 2022 |url=https://councilonstrategicrisks.org/2022/11/30/statement-to-the-biological-weapons-convention-review-conference-from-the-council-on-strategic-risks/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{thecouncilonstrategicrisks2022statement, author = {{The Council on Strategic Risks}}, title = {{Statement to the Biological Weapons Convention Review Conference from the Council on Strategic Risks}}, publisher = {The Council on Strategic Risks}, year = {2022}, month = nov, url = {https://councilonstrategicrisks.org/2022/11/30/statement-to-the-biological-weapons-convention-review-conference-from-the-council-on-strategic-risks/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }