THE CURRENT OPERATIONAL ENVIRONMENT FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF CBRN HAZARDS

• Main Author: Alexandru Herciu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: National Defence University of Ukraine named after Ivan Cherniakhovsky 2020-09-01
• Series: Sučasnì Informacìjnì Tehnologìï u Sferì Bezpeki ta Oboroni
• Subjects: hybrid threats; cbrn weapons of mass destruction; toxic industial materials
• Online Access: http://sit.nuou.org.ua/article/view/212773

In the current context, the most prominent menace to global security prevails, the same it was 50 years ago, the feasibility of using the nuclear arsenal. This arsenal continues to be renewed, incorporating increasingly advanced technologies and state-of-the-art vectors capable of transporting these means at very high speeds and almost unlimited distances. A significant feature of modern military conflicts is the multidimensional nature, specific to hybrid warfare. Unconventional hybrid threats should also consider the possible use of chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear weapons of mass destruction (CBRN WMD) and the generation of destruction or sabotage incidents, which may result in contamination with toxic industrial materials (TIMs). The current operational environment appears crystallized in a new, more refined, and sophisticated form of the Cold War, with two major classical strategic blocs, namely NATO and partner countries, on the one hand, and the Russian Federation as the opposite pole. The two great actors are not the only constituent elements of the current geostrategic ensemble. Added to this are the conflict in Syria, tensions in Israel and Palestine, the complicated US-Iran relationship over the last state's nuclear program, the volatility of the Kim Jong-un regime in North Korea and, last but not least, the rise of China and India as economic and military superpowers. In this study, we will detail the basics of international law in the possession, production, and use of CBRN agents, the declared arsenals of weapons of mass destruction of main world actors, and how CBRN agents had been used in recent conflicts.