What the Covid-19 Pandemic Remind Us: Revaluation of the Soviet and Russian Biological Weapons Program

Abstract

Throughout the history there are several examples in which biological agents have been used as weapons against humans and animals. Despite signing the Biological and Toxic Weapons Convention (BTWC) of 1972 that banned research, use, and production of BW, the Soviet Union continued to BW program that is currently uncertain whether Russia has continued during the post-Cold War era or not. This paper uses Western and Russian sources to describe the Soviet Union’s BW program and underlines our contention that BW continue to constitute a possible threat, as reminded by COVID-19.