The CBW network for a comprehensive reinforcement of norms against chemical and biological weapons (CBWNet)

The research project CBWNet will be carried out jointly by the Berlin Office of the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy (IFSH) at the University of Hamburg, the Chair for Public Law and Inter­national Law at the University of Gießen, the Peace Research Institute Frankfurt (PRIF) and the Carl Friedrich Weizsäcker-Centre for Science and Peace Research (ZNF) at the University of Hamburg. The joint project aims to identify options to comprehensively strengthen the norms against chemical and biological weapons (CBW). These norms have increasingly been challenged in recent years, inter alia by the repeated use of chemical weapons in Syria. The project scrutinizes the forms and con­sequences of norm contestations within the CBW prohibition regimes from an inter­disciplinary perspective. This includes a comprehensive analysis of the normative order of the regimes as well as an investigation of the possible con­sequences which technological developments, international security dynamics or terrorist threats might yield for the CBW prohibition regimes. Wherever research results point to challenges for or a weakening of CBW norms, the project partners will develop options and proposals to uphold or strengthen these norms and to enhance their resilience.

Sub-project “Compliance with and Enforcement of the Norms Against CBW”

Compliance with and enforcement of prohibition norms are crucial factors for the success and effectiveness of international dis­armament regimes. In the case of CBW, however, these factors also present major challenges. This sub-project, which will be coordinated and directed at PRIF, will reprocess existing conceptual research on arms control and disarmament for this particular issue area to gain insights about the preconditions, means and frameworks that are necessary to enhance norm compliance and enforcement in the CBW field. Existing measures will be scrutinized against this conceptual background and with regard to their practical application. A systematic analysis of the discourses about compliance and enforcement in the CBW regimes is intended to highlight crucial positions and help enhance understanding of the political dynamics within the regimes. The research results will also be used to generate recommendations and policy options for the strengthening of compliance with and enforcement of CBW norms in a sustainable way.

The joint research project is being funded by the Federal Ministry for Education and Research for four years (April 2022 until March 2026).

To the project website