8 Questions the U.S. Senate Should Ask Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins on Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Threats

The Council on Strategic Risks outlines key policy challenges and proposed Senate questioning for Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins' nomination as Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security Affairs. The authors emphasize the need for the U.S. to address the erosion of norms against chemical weapons, vulnerabilities exposed by COVID-19 regarding biological threats, and the rising risks of nuclear proliferation and treaty dissolution. They suggest that the nominee should be questioned on strengthening the Biological Weapons Convention, managing the final destruction of U.S. chemical stockpiles by 2023, and reinvigorating 21st-century nuclear arms control.

• There is a perceived erosion of international norms against the use of chemical weapons, evidenced by the Syrian government's use of sarin against its own citizens, the DPRK's use of VX for the assassination of Kim Jong-Nam, and Russia's use of novichok in Germany and the UK.
• The COVID-19 pandemic revealed critical vulnerabilities in U.S. and global preparedness, which may influence how state and non-state actors perceive the utility of biological weapons programs.
• The United States is committed to the complete destruction of its remaining chemical weapons stockpile by a deadline in 2023, as required by the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC).
• Nuclear threats are increasing due to geopolitical tensions, the development of "low yield" nuclear weapons, a shift toward viewing nuclear weapons as tools for warfighting rather than just deterrence, and the dissolution of key treaties.

APA

Lim, Y.-B., & Beaver, B. (2021). 8 Questions the U.S. Senate Should Ask Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins on Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Threats. The Council on Strategic Risks. https://councilonstrategicrisks.org/2021/04/21/8-questions-the-u-s-senate-should-ask-ambassador-bonnie-jenkins-on-nuclear-biological-and-chemical-threats/

Chicago

Lim, Yong-Bee, and Bill Beaver. 8 Questions the U.S. Senate Should Ask Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins on Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Threats. The Council on Strategic Risks, 2021. https://councilonstrategicrisks.org/2021/04/21/8-questions-the-u-s-senate-should-ask-ambassador-bonnie-jenkins-on-nuclear-biological-and-chemical-threats/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Lim |first1=Yong-Bee |last2=Beaver |first2=Bill |title=8 Questions the U.S. Senate Should Ask Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins on Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Threats |publisher=The Council on Strategic Risks |date=21 April 2021 |url=https://councilonstrategicrisks.org/2021/04/21/8-questions-the-u-s-senate-should-ask-ambassador-bonnie-jenkins-on-nuclear-biological-and-chemical-threats/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{lim2021questions, author = {Lim, Yong-Bee and Beaver, Bill}, title = {{8 Questions the U.S. Senate Should Ask Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins on Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Threats}}, publisher = {The Council on Strategic Risks}, year = {2021}, month = apr, url = {https://councilonstrategicrisks.org/2021/04/21/8-questions-the-u-s-senate-should-ask-ambassador-bonnie-jenkins-on-nuclear-biological-and-chemical-threats/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }