The Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BWC) lacks any mechanism to verify compliance. In the absence of a verification mechanism and while not a substitute for such a system, states parties have developed a system of confidence-building measures (CBMs) to increase transparency around a state’s activities in the biological field. However, over the years various limitations in the CBMs regime have been noted. To address these limitations and look for innovative approaches to strengthen the Convention, some states parties have explored the concept of voluntary transparency initiatives (VTIs), non-binding measures agreed by interested states parties to enhance transparency among other things. Among several VTIs is the concept of peer review exercises (PREs) in which one or more states parties invite others to assess selected aspects of their treaty implementation through a flexible and tailored approach that can include document review, facility visits and exchanges of best practices. Since 2013, six PREs have been organized along with several other initiatives under the broader VTI framework.
This report begins by laying out the genesis and evolution of the implementation of peer review-type initiatives in the context of other voluntary initiatives to enhance transparency. The report proceeds to outline the key elements of the six PREs that were organized to date, providing an overview of their duration, location, objectives, focus, stakeholders, process and results. The report then turns to address the wider discussion within the BWC around the VTIs in general and the PREs in particular. The report concludes with some reflections on the advantages and disadvantages of such initiatives and possible ways to advance work on this topic. An annex to this report includes a side by side summary of the main features of each of the PREs that were held to help compare the different ways in which they are conceived and executed.
Citation: Espona, M.J. (2024). Voluntary Transparency Initiatives: The Case of Peer Review Exercises in the Context of the BWC, UNIDIR, Geneva. https://doi.org/10.37559/WMD/24/CBW/02