Gen. (Ret.) Chalermsuk Yugala

Advisor to Royal Thai Army Chemical Department

and

Chairman of Thailand BWC Committee

National Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (BIOTEC)

Regional Workshop for ASEAN States Parties to the BWCOn Preparedness to Respond to the Deliberate Use of Biological Weapons

Bangkok 6-7 June 2019

•Biological Weapons, Biological Agents

•Biological Warfare Agents and Production

•Biological Weapons Threats:

Global, Thailand and SE Asia

Agenda

!

What are Biological and Toxin Weapons?

BWC does not give a definition.

Article 1

Each SP undertakes never to develop, produce, stockpile or otherwise acquire or retain:

(1) Microbial or other biological agents, or toxins whatever their origin or method of production

(2) Weapons, equipment or means of delivery designed to use such agents or toxins for hostile purposes or in armed conflict

What are Biological and Toxin Weapons?

• Weapon systems that disseminate disease-causing organisms (pathogens) or toxins to harm or kill humans, animals or plants [biological agents].

• Generally consist of two parts:

A weaponized agent

Delivery mechanism

What are Biological Agents?

• Almost any pathogen (disease-causing organism such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, prions or rickettsiae) or toxin (poisons derived from animals, plants or microorganisms, or similar substances produced synthetically).

• The agents can be enhanced to make them more suitable for mass production, storage, and dissemination as weapons [biological warfare agents].

Past Production of Biological Warfare Agents

Unit 731 of the Japanese Army in China during the 2nd World War

Past Production of Biological Warfare Agents

Wartime Britain produced anthrax in preparation to retaliate Germany and experimented its effectiveness on animals on Gruinard island off the coast of Scotland.

Past Production of Biological Warfare Agents

Former biological warfare agent production plant at Fort Detrick, U.S.A.

Past Production of Biological Warfare Agents

During the cold war period, anthrax leaked from a biological warfare agent production plant at the town of Sverdlovsk in former USSR, killing a number of people.

Past Production of Biological Warfare Agents

Past Production of Biological Warfare Agents

Al Hakam

Biological Warfare Agents Production

Only states were and are capable of

producing biological warfare agents in

bulk, and they are the only likely actors

able to wage full fledge biological war

with munitions that have been specially

developed to disseminate these agents.

Biological vs. Nuclear Weapons

Biological Warfare Agents Production

A product from a certain state-own

biological warfare agents production

facility would have its own particular

“signature”, due to the production

process employed.

Biological Warfare Agents Production

Scientists were able to determine right

away that the anthrax spores found in

envelopes sent to attack various persons in

the U.S. in 2001 were not of the biological

warfare agent grade from any known former

production facility. The spores were from the

Ames strain commonly use in laboratories (the

U.S. weaponized Vollum 1B strain).

Non-State use of biological agent

Biological Warfare Agents Production

Historical biological weapons

programmes have included efforts to

produce: aflatoxin, anthrax, botulinum

toxin, foot-and-mouth disease, glanders,

plague, Q fever, rice blast, ricin, Rocky

Mountain spotted fever, smallpox, and

tularaemia, among others.

Biological Weapons Threats

Global Threats

Synthetic biology is the buzz word.

Synthetic biology is the design and

construction of new biological parts, devices,

and systems, and the re-design of existing,

natural biological systems for useful

purposes. It can be used to create a new

microbe or modify an existing one!!!!

The hazards of synthetic biology

include biosecurity hazards, stemming

from deliberate engineering of organisms

to cause harm.

Synthetic or redesigned organisms could

theoretically be used for bioterrorism.

Potential risks include recreating known

pathogens from scratch, engineering existing

pathogens to be more dangerous, and

engineering microbes to produce harmful

biochemicals.

Perceived Threatsto Thailand and SE Asia

Perceived Threats to

Thailand

:

None from armed conflicts in

the region (BWC honoured)

External Threat:

- From international terrorist

groups (carry out attack or

render support to domestic

terrorists)

Internal Threat:

- From terrorists, possibly with

links to international terrorist

groups

Sources of

Biologicalmaterials

available in country

Sources of materials

☣ No biological warfare agent

☣ Naturally occurring

pathogens

Sources of materials

☣ Cultures obtainable from

laboratories

☣ Covertly cultured for

attack purpose

• Dissemination of aerosol for inhalation

(from pressurized container, UAV, vehicle-mounted generator, IED, etc.)

Assassination of person or the mass:

• Direct contamination of food and water

• Powder in mail

White powder in mail delivered

to persons and foreign embassies

and found in various places soon

after 9/11 in U.S.A. (all either

hoaxes or over react)

Perceived Biological

Threats to SE Asia

Domestic and External Threats:

- From terrorist groups,

especially JI and IS (ex-fighters returned from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan)

In the Philippines, the domestic terrorist group Abu Sayyaf had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) group even before the collapse of IS in Iraq and Syria. Now that large number of citizens of SE Asia nations who went to fight for IS in the middle-east had returned home, they could very well join up and help domestic terrorist groups – one day they might resort to using biological agents.