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Coronavirus CSS Blog

Trust and Transparency: Antidotes against Corona Conspiracies

Image courtesy of United Nations COVID-19 Response/Unsplash

This blog belongs to the CSS’ coronavirus blog series, which forms a part of the center’s analysis of the security policy implications of the coronavirus crisis. See the CSS special theme page on the coronavirus for more.

Many theories are circling around the origin of the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Although scientists agree that the virus has not been manipulated, rumors persist about the possibility that it leaked from a laboratory in Wuhan or that it is a biological weapon. The Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) bans biological weapons, but lacks effective control mechanisms. Strengthening the BTWC could help in reducing the uncertainty that provides a basis for conspiracy theories.