Lugar Takes Nunn-Lugar Arms Control to Africa
Trip Report: Nunn-Lugar Global Africa Mission
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In November 2010, Senator Lugar (R-IN) led a Congressional delegation from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, along with a team of Pentagon arms control experts, on a missiob to Africa to help secure deadly biological pathogens, in addition to destroying other lethal armaments.
“Deadly diseases like Ebola, Marburg, and Anthrax are prevalent in Africa,” said Senator Lugar, the Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “These pathogens can be made into horrible weapons aimed at our troops, our friends and allies, and even the American public. This is a threat we cannot ignore.”
Senator Lugar and former Senator Sam Nunn (D-GA) developed the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction program in late 1991 to secure and destroy nuclear, chemical and biological weapons in the republics of the former Soviet Union.
“Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups are active in Africa, and it is imperative that deadly pathogens stored in labs there are secure,” Senator Lugar said. “Building cooperative programs with African countries are in our mutual security interests and will also have the humanitarian effect of identifying and controlling new diseases that could quickly spread around the world.”
Senator Lugar and the Pentagon team inspected laboratories in Kenya and Uganda. These labs are used to diagnose infectious diseases, study the nature of the diseases, and facilitate treatment to help prevent outbreaks. Pentagon officials, however, have found insufficient security at the labs given the terrorist threat.