The Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction (GP), was established at the G8 Summit in Kananaskis, Canada in 2002, as a 10-year, $20 billion initiative to prevent terrorists, or states that support them, from acquiring or developing weapons of mass destruction. Since then, the GP has grown to include 24 partners and has allocated approximately $21 billion worldwide. During the 2011 G8 Summit in Deauville, France, Leaders agreed to extend the Partnership beyond 2012.
Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins, the U.S. Department of State Coordinator for Threat Reduction Programs, serves as the U.S. representative to the GP and as the Chair of the Global Partnership Working Group during the U.S. G8 Presidency this year. As the Global Partnership Chair, the United States is focusing on the areas enunciated at the 2011 G8 Summit in Deauville, France, specifically nuclear and radiological security, biological security, scientist engagement, and facilitating the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1540, a resolution to combat the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
Under the U.S. Chairmanship, the GP established a Biological Security Sub-Working Group (BSWG), which promotes efforts to reduce risks associated with biological threats, regardless of cause, through collaboration with other member nations, International Organizations, and health and science sector counterparts.
The first task of the working group was to draft a document highlighting five major deliverables for GP assistance, which was originally agreed upon within the BSWG and subsequently accepted by the Global Partnership. This document will be assessed on an annual basis for the next five years: