John Gilbert, Senior Science Fellow of the Center’s Scientists Working Group on Biological and Chemical Security, was quoted in Vox on the destruction of the United States’ chemical weapons stockpile.
“A lot of this happened because the CWC is one of a kind: a near-universal disarmament treaty that has real heft behind it. The OPCW, which today has an estimated 2023 budget of around $80 million and some 500 staff members, was created to oversee implementation and inspections. It also bans specific substances, which makes it harder to circumvent. “Other than the Non-Proliferation Treaty, it’s the only one that is still being actively implemented worldwide from a verification [standpoint] and from otherwise ensuring people meet their obligations,” said John Gilbert, a retired US Air Force colonel and senior science fellow with the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation’s Scientists Working Group.” Read more