West Point Department of Chemistry and Life Science – Nexus of Army Chemical and Biological Intellectual Capital
Date
2018
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Countering WMD Journal
Abstract
Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction (CWMD) is highly prioritized in nearly every strategic guidance document identifying threats to the United States and its allies as our adversaries continue to pursue a range of new capabilities.1,2,3 Joint Publication 3-40 defines a WMD as “chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear weapons or devices capable of a high order of destruction and/ or causing mass casualties.”4 Whether criminals, terrorists, or nation states, their “increased access to expertise, materials, and technologies heightens the risk that these adversaries will seek, acquire, proliferate, and employ WMD.”5 The recent use of chemical weapons by both the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and the Syrian Government, the continued testing of nuclear devices by North Korea, aggressive posturing by Russia, and the Iran nuclear framework are issues concerning weapons of mass destruction (WMD) that confront combatant commands around the globe. Recent viral outbreaks such as Ebola in Western Africa, reports of a defecting North Korean soldier with anthrax immunity, as well as legacy bioweapons programs throughout the former Soviet Union suggest continued biological threats from naturally occurring events to state sponsored efforts.
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Keywords
Weapons of mass destruction
Citation
Burpo, Fred J and Hummel, Stephen G., "West Point Department of Chemistry and Life Science – Nexus of Army Chemical and Biological Intellectual Capital" (2018).