Defining "Weapons of Mass Destruction?; Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction Occasional Paper 8

[6], 91, [3] pages. Charts. Notes. Dr. W. Seth Carus is a Distinguished Research Fellow at the National Defense University. His research focuses on issues related to biological warfare, including threat assessment, biodefense, and the role of the Department of Defense in responding to biological agent use. He also studies allegations of biological agent use and has written a working paper, Bioterrorism and Biocrimes: The Illicit Use of Biological Agents in the 20th Century, and several articles on that subject. He has been at NDU since 1997. From 2003 to 2013 he also served as the Center's Deputy Director. From 2001 to 2003, Dr. Carus was detailed to the Office of the Vice President, where he was the Senior Advisor to the Vice President for Biodefense. Before assuming that position, he was on the staff of the National Preparedness Review commissioned to recommend changes in homeland security organization and supported the Office of Homeland Security while it was being established. Prior to joining NDU, Dr. Carus was a research analyst at the Center for Naval Analyses. He worked on studies related to naval forward presence in the Persian Gulf and on the impact of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons on the conduct of a major regional contingency in Korea. From 1991 to 1994, Dr. Carus was a member of the Policy Planning staff in the Undersecretary of Defense for Policy, Office of the Secretary of Defense. Before joining the government, he was a research fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Dr. Carus has a Ph.D. from the Johns Hopkins University. The Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction is at the forefront of education and research on the impact of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) on U.S. and global security. The Center was established in 1994 as the Center for Counterproliferation Research at the request of then Assistant Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter as an outgrowth of the Defense Counterproliferation Initiative. Ambassador Robert Joseph, who later served as a Special Assistant to the President on the National Security Council staff and as an Under Secretary of State under President George W. Bush, served as the Center's first Director. In 2001, Dr. John Reichart succeeded Ambassador Joseph as Director, and the Center expanded its research from WMD challenges to the military to encompass a full spectrum of WMD issues affecting a broad set of U.S. government departments and agencies. In 2004, the Center for Counterproliferation Research changed its name to the Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction to reflect this change in mission. In 2008, pursuant to the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff Instruction 1801.01C, the Center became the focal point for WMD education in Joint Professional Military Education. In 2015, Mr. Charles Lutes succeeded Dr. Reichart as Director, following Dr. Reichart's retirement after more than forty years of government service. Throughout its history, the Center has maintained a broad mandate for education, research, and outreach, and has pursued ambitious initiatives in these areas. Its research contributes to the understanding of the security implications of WMD, as well as to the challenge of fashioning effective responses. The Center is actively engaged on pressing and emerging WMD issues, such as interdiction, elimination, consequence management, deterrence, and escalation management. It also examines responses to new and evolving WMD threats, including nuclear terrorism, bioterrorism and nontraditional agents, and assists combatant commands in preparing to deal with the operational impact of chemical and biological weapons. Through its education, research, and outreach programs, the Center seeks to enhance awareness in the next generation of military and civilian leaders of the WMD threat. In addition to the Center's courses on countering WMD and consequence management at National Defense University, staff members also lecture on WMD issues wi. …