Newsletter #3 - March 2021

On 11 March 2021, the world marked the one year anniversary of COVID-19 being declared a pandemic. Given the devastating global impacts of COVID-19 – which include more than 2.5 million dead, 400 million jobs lost and a forecast of $28 trillion in economic damage by 2025 -  there are heightened concerns that terrorist groups and certain states could be incentivized to turn to biological or other weapons and materials of mass destruction. In this context, the work of the Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction to prevent the proliferation and use of chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) weapons and related materials remains critical for the maintenance of global peace and security.  

Notwithstanding the many daunting challenges posed by the pandemic, Global Partnership (GP) member countries continue to deliver a wide range of impactful programming across the entire CBRN threat reduction spectrum. As outlined in the GP’s annual Programming Annex, in 2020 a total of 245 Projects valued at US$669 million (or €555 million) were implemented by GP Members in dozens of countries in every region of the world. Many additional contributions were measured not by financial means, but by the leadership and diplomatic efforts of members in the areas of threat reduction or non-proliferation. The magnitude of this collective contribution underscores why the Global Partnership remains the premier global mechanism for the delivery of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) threat reduction programming and capacity building assistance to prevent, detect and respond to CBRN proliferation and incidents.
 
A Message from the United Kingdom – 2021 GP President
In the two decades since its establishment at the 2002 Kananaskis Summit, the G7-led Global Partnership has been the primary international mechanism for coordinating WMD threat reduction programmes. The GP continues to address the serious challenges, regionally and globally, from chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear weapons. The G7 group rotates its chair annually. In 2021, the UK will chair the G7 and the Global Partnership... read more about UK plans and priorities for 2021.

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