States Agree to Restart Talks on Enhancing Bioweapons Ban
Philippine Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Maria Teresa T. Almojuela briefs the Review Conference on her facilitation of discussions on international cooperation. (Geneva PM photo)
GENEVA, 21 December 2022 – States parties to the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) agreed on 16 December 2022 to restart talks that could pave the way to the negotiation of a legally binding protocol that includes compliance mechanisms, ending a twenty-year stalemate.
Negotiations for such a protocol, which would allow the BWC to verify whether States Parties are adhering to the treaty’s ban on biological weapons production and stockpiling, broke down in 2001 and had been unable to move forward, until last week.
A working group to flesh out issues related to the BWC, including verification and compliance, was established at the end of the ninth Review Conference of States Parties to the BWC, held in Geneva from 28 November to 16 December under the presidency of Italian Ambassador Leonardo Bencini.
The new working group will conduct talks in the next two to five years and aim to agree on concrete recommendations that could potentially include the initiation of formal protocol negotiations.
The meeting also saw intense discussions on issues related to scientific developments and international cooperation. The latter issue had long been hampered by differences related to export controls, but the conference saw positions on this issue evolve, leading to an agreement to develop mechanisms to facilitate scientific advice and international cooperation and assistance in the context of the BWC.
Philippine Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Maria Teresa T. Almojuela, who was tasked by Ambassador Bencini to facilitate discussions on international cooperation, helped broker the compromise.
During the three-week conference, delegations also presented concrete measures to operationalize the treaty, including in the context of preparing for a possible biological attack.
“The pandemic was a stirring reminder that the outbreak of any infectious disease – whether deliberate, accidental, or natural – knows no borders and imperils us all. It exposed the lack of established mechanisms to facilitate effective and coordinated response to such an outbreak and to verify instances of a possible biological accident, misuse or attack,” said Ambassador Evan P. Garcia, permanent representative of the Philippines to the United Nations in Geneva.
Practical proposals included establishing a database that can aid national preparedness, conducting simulation and table-top exercises, adopting a surveillance system to protect agriculture and biodiversity from biohazards, tapping biorisk management standards, and endorsing voluntary measures and codes of conduct for life scientists, among others.
The conference, which requires unanimous agreement to make any decision, could not agree to endorse any of the proposals, but Philippine delegate Jonelle John S. Domingo said, “states parties will continue to pursue these measures in good faith with or without the imprimatur of an official document.” Domingo also served as vice chair of the conference’s drafting committee.
Meanwhile, the conference agreed on a modest expansion of the Implementation Support Unit (ISU), a U.N. body that supports states parties’ work to enhance the BWC’s implementation.
The Philippines has been among the ISU’s supporters, providing voluntary financial contribution every year. Manila has also been tapping the ISU’s expertise in its efforts to promote the BWC’s implementation in the Asia-Pacific in line with the ASEAN Political-Security Community Blueprint 2025.
In June this year, the Philippines, together with the Republic of Korea and the U.S., hosted a table-top exercise among ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) Member States in Manila to simulate regional response to a potential biological attack.
In August, ASEAN Foreign Ministers called for multilateral negotiations to strengthen the BWC, noting that the lack of verification measures pose a challenge to the said treaty and that enhancing cooperation and assistance in the BWC context is important.
This was echoed by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. in his speech at the United Nations in September, where he stressed “the need to update global structures” on the peaceful uses of biology, among others. END
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