Biological Weapons and Modern Warfare

Biological Weapons and Modern Warfare

Executive research project for the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, National Defense University. Reviews the use and development of biological agents with respect to the historical and current US BW program, advantages and disadvantages of BW, strategic implications, tech advantages, and ethical issues.

1991

The US needs an effective biodefense program, and the overreliance on abiding by the BWC could potentially be detrimental for national security. More specifically, the author finds BW to be useful because agents are cheap, self-proliferating, discreet, and do not impact property. Although the author also discusses disadvantages, the thesis is that the US is underprepared and BW has potential for military use. BW might be utilized for deterrence, terrorism, agricultural disruption, etc. and will be greatly aided by developments in bioengineering.