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By Category: Policy & Initiatives

Do not censor science in the name of biosecurity

(Nature.com) Security officials should not be concerned about the publication of mutant-flu research, says bio-weapons expert Tim Trevan. he recent controversy over research into mutated versions of the H5N1 flu virus has focused on biosecurity concerns. It is easy to get the impression that this debate has created a clear split between a scientific community  Read More »

Challenge 10: Transnational security threats – new research and converging strategies

(The Conversation) … Overlooked is Obama’s National Strategy for Countering Biological Threats. Gregory Koblentz contends in International Affairs that Obama’s strategy is preventative; that its definition of biosecurity focuses on improving global health security (pandemics and disease prevention); and that intelligence and law enforcement personnel must work more closely with the life sciences and public  Read More »

Report Cites Risks of WMD Material Theft in India

(Global Security Newswire) A new expert report highlights the continued risk that ingredients suitable for use in a weapon of mass destruction could be stolen from facilities in India, DNA India reported on Tuesday. The analysis by the British Royal United Services Institute and the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi examines the potential for  Read More »

United States launches three biodefence centres

(Nature News Blog) The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today awarded contracts for the creation of three new centres tasked with responding to the threat of future pandemics and biological attacks. To be based in Maryland, North Carolina and Texas, the three centres are comprised of academic and industry consortia whose role  Read More »

Flu researchers don’t know when they can restart work

(New Scientist) After six months of dispute, research in the Netherlands that made a deadly H5N1 flu airborne will be published this week. The scientists behind it now want to get on with their work – but they can’t. In December 2011, a US biosecurity committee advised against publishing the research, fearing it was “dual-use  Read More »

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