Annual report 2023 - CBRN Disarmament and Non-proliferation

In 2023, global tensions have increased further, as a consequence of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and later the war between Israel and Hamas. Russian threats and false accusations against Ukraine have brought a continued increased focus on CBRN-related issues. In regards to nuclear weapons, the threat of Russian nuclear weapons use remains tangible. In 2023, Russia withdrew from New START and deratified the CTBT. A result of the current global situation is that continued work in arms control, disarmament and the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons remains problematic. In parallel with the situation surrounding Russia, an expansion of the Chinese nuclear weapons capabilities is likely underway. In addition to the established nuclear weapon states, both North Korea and Iran have continued to expand their nuclear infrastructure capabilities. Positively, all declared chemical weapons have now been destroyed as USA completed its destruction in July 2023. However, the Chemical Weapons Convention's review conference did not result in any final document as the state parties, as before, could not agree on several of the convention's core issues. The year was also marked by major contradictions, among other things linked to accusations of Russia violating the convention during its invasion of Ukraine. With respect to the biological disarmament and non-proliferation sphere, the new working group of the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) has begun discussions regarding several significant issues. At the same time Russia, largely through its intensive disinformation campaign, has continued to strongly question US and Ukrainian compliance with the BTWC. Russia's obstruction of convention meetings has paralyzed standard meeting practice, a worrying development that runs counter to strengthening the Convention.