While this headline is hardly newsworthy (or credible), given North Korea's historical record of making claims against the United States, it is a reminder of the same pattern of conduct that we should recognize. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/11269553/North-Korea-accuses-US-of-developing-Ebola-virus.html Quoted in the article, is a law professor from the University of Illinois (who teaches international law) who gave an interview in October 2014 that supports their claim. I had to listen to his interview before accepting the quote as accurate -- perhaps he was misquoted? But I found he was not misquoted. He makes several claims that the U.S. is involved in making bioweapons and presents as proof our work in national laboratories on vaccines for exotic diseases like Ebola. This is similar to the logic supporting the claim made by North Korea in the early 1950s during the Korean War (1950-53) that the U.S. had used bioweapons against them partially based on the logic that because the U.S. was vaccinating troops against yellow fever that it was likely the disease they would use against them with insect-vectors, Japanese style. (See, M. Furmanski, "Misperceptions in preparing for biological attack: an historical survey," (Rev. sci. tech. Off. int. Epiz., 2006, 25 (1), 53-70).
There was more and the U.S.S.R. archives revealed when opened in 1998 that North Korea was being coached by the Soviet Union. In May 1951, North Korea charged that the U.S. had used smallpox and also multiple species of arachnids, clams, insects, mammals, paper leaflets etc. to spread plague, cholera, and other diseases on multiple occasions. A formal complaint was made to the UN Security Council. Long investigatory meetings followed and no allegations were ever proved. It was not until January 1998 when the Soviet archives revealed that the claims were not only wrong they were fraudulent. For a full account and excellent footnoting of the case study of North Korea and their allegations of biowarfare against the United States see, Milton Leitenberg's chapter "False Allegations of U.S. Biological Weapons Use During the Korean War," in the book, "Terrorism, War or Disease?" (Stanford Univ Press, 2008).
The trouble with misattribution in biological weapons and epidemics will continue to be difficult, even with advanced genomic identification of strains and the evolution of quickly evolving bacteria and viruses that can help to identify a timeline and origin of the disease. For example, the outbreak of cholera in Haiti during the earthquake disaster was traceable to the UN Peacekeepers and a group from Nepal who brought it into a country that had not seen cholera in 150 years. However, even this clear evidence was not taken as a liability or calling for compensation from the United Nations. We have a long way to go in attribution but even further in compensation for mass injury.
These kinds of claims by North Korea and unsubstantiated claims by people who should know better just seem to keep us in the dark ages of bio-literacy.
There was more and the U.S.S.R. archives revealed when opened in 1998 that North Korea was being coached by the Soviet Union. In May 1951, North Korea charged that the U.S. had used smallpox and also multiple species of arachnids, clams, insects, mammals, paper leaflets etc. to spread plague, cholera, and other diseases on multiple occasions. A formal complaint was made to the UN Security Council. Long investigatory meetings followed and no allegations were ever proved. It was not until January 1998 when the Soviet archives revealed that the claims were not only wrong they were fraudulent. For a full account and excellent footnoting of the case study of North Korea and their allegations of biowarfare against the United States see, Milton Leitenberg's chapter "False Allegations of U.S. Biological Weapons Use During the Korean War," in the book, "Terrorism, War or Disease?" (Stanford Univ Press, 2008).
The trouble with misattribution in biological weapons and epidemics will continue to be difficult, even with advanced genomic identification of strains and the evolution of quickly evolving bacteria and viruses that can help to identify a timeline and origin of the disease. For example, the outbreak of cholera in Haiti during the earthquake disaster was traceable to the UN Peacekeepers and a group from Nepal who brought it into a country that had not seen cholera in 150 years. However, even this clear evidence was not taken as a liability or calling for compensation from the United Nations. We have a long way to go in attribution but even further in compensation for mass injury.
These kinds of claims by North Korea and unsubstantiated claims by people who should know better just seem to keep us in the dark ages of bio-literacy.
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ReplyDeleteam not surprised North Korea is blaming the United States. Such an act is a typical pattern of North Korea. It blames the U.S. and its allies before exercising activities, which are in violation of international law. The U.S. should not be bothered frivolous claim made by North Korea.
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