Pathogen proliferation: Threats from the former Soviet bioweapons complex

This article outlines the proliferation threats of pathogen collections from the former Soviet biological weapons (BW) program and the inherent difficulties in safeguarding sensitive biological materials. It describes new U,S. government efforts to improve security conditions of these collections through the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction Program. Finally, the article analyzes these U,S, programs and offers additional policy recommendations to reduce the proliferation threat from these dangerous pathogens.