Army admits US soldiers cannot be protected against all biological weapons amid rising threats

New US Army biodefense plan integrates biological warfare scenarios into combat training as AI and biotechnology raise threat concerns.

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The US military has unveiled a plan to prepare soldiers to fight through biological attacks rather than assuming that every threat can be stopped.

A newly signed plan that would introduce biological warfare scenarios into routine combat training as artificial intelligence (AI) and biotechnology raise new concerns about the weapons America's adversaries could develop in the near future.

Dr. Alison Tamasi, a senior official at the Army's Nuclear and Weapons of Mass Destruction Countermeasures Agency, told reporters on Monday: "Can we protect every soldier against every potential biological threat? Probably not."

"We can't put them in a bubble," he added.

The change comes as U.S. officials continue to assess whether Moscow maintains an offensive biological weapons program after a mysterious death in Russia was linked to an anti-plague facility — rekindling questions about biological safety and transparency.

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However, the Army hopes that their implementation plan will help prepare the force to deploy and fight in biologically contested environments by 2035.

Rather than treating disease outbreaks primarily as medical emergencies, the military requires commanders, intelligence officers, and logistics personnel to prepare for biological threats while continuing their combat missions.

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One of the biggest changes is bringing biological incidents into major military combat exercises, forcing commanders to respond to potential outbreaks while continuing other missions.

Rather than relying on specialized biological exercises, the military requires troops in various military functions to deal with biological threats as part of their regular training.

Tamasi described a scenario involving a simulated norovirus outbreak at a military port. While medical personnel struggled to contain the outbreak, supply officers had to determine how to keep vital supplies moving.

This example illustrates a broader shift in the military's approach: biological threats are no longer viewed simply as medical problems, but as potential disruptions to military operations that commanders must be prepared to manage.

"We have to make sure the doctrine is aligned," Tamasi said.

The new plan, signed last week, puts the plan into action. The Army's updated biodefense strategy, released in September, sets the goal of preparing soldiers to deploy and fight in biological environments by 2035.

The first two-year implementation cycle will focus on establishing policies, improving coordination among Army agencies, and developing personnel with specialized biological expertise. More advanced technologies and acquisition efforts are expected in later stages.

The effort comes amid growing concerns about the potential of artificial intelligence and biotechnology to accelerate the development of biological threats.

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Tamasi described these advances as a dual-use challenge, with technologies that could accelerate medical discovery and also potentially allow new biological threats to emerge more quickly.

Russia remains a particular concern for US national security officials. Washington has long assessed that Moscow maintains an offensive biological weapons program inherited from the Soviet Union, despite Russia's obligations under the Biological Weapons Convention.

The United States renounced offensive biological weapons in 1969 and is also a party to the Convention that prohibits the development, production, and stockpiling of biological weapons.

The United States, amid reports of a second case of pneumonia, has appealed to Russia.

Daria Shipilova, a 28-year-old employee of the Irkutsk Plague Research Institute in Siberia, died on October 2 after contracting severe pneumonia. Russian media initially reported a possible pneumonic plague infection after a suspected lab accident, but Russian officials denied an incident, saying tests found no evidence of plague or other dangerous pathogens.

The cause of his death has not yet been determined. In an update on Oct. 10, the World Health Organization said it had found no evidence of ongoing transmission linked to the case, while noting there was still no confirmed diagnosis.

Asked how much Russia's biological weapons activities help the military plan, Tamasi said the strategy is based on "big intelligence studies" rather than any adversary.

"It's not just focused on one particular threat actor," he said.

Asked what lessons the military has learned from Russia's biological weapons program, Tamasi said the strategy is designed to deal with biological threats regardless of their origin — whether accidental, intentional or ultimately determined not to pose the threat we first feared.

He explained that for military commanders, the immediate priority is to respond to a potential biological threat and sustain operations, not to determine its origin. Questions of attribution involve the broader US government.

The approach also shows how the military plans to identify emerging threats.

Daria Shipilova, 28, an employee of the Irkutsk Antiplague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East, died after contracting pneumonia of unknown cause, prompting quarantine and strict precautions in the region. Russian officials say tests have found no evidence that his illness is linked to pathogens. (East 2 West News)

Officials said the military is trying to gather information from environmental monitoring, medical facilities and intelligence reports to detect potential biological incidents earlier.

That could include wastewater monitoring similar to that used during the COVID-19 pandemic, Tamasi said. The goal is to give commanders a more complete picture of potential biological threats so they can react before disruptions spread.

According to military officials, the COVID-19 pandemic exposed the limitations of treating biological threats primarily as public health emergencies and reinforced the need for military leaders outside the medical field to incorporate these risks into operational planning.

This strategy addresses misinformation as another operational challenge, especially when troops and commanders must make decisions about vaccines, protective measures, and communications during a biological incident.

The Army has also begun conducting biodefense seminars for senior leaders. A three-star panel determined that top military leaders must receive at least one hour of training on biodefense and the "ground truth" surrounding biological threats, Tamasi said.

Ultimately, the military hopes to prepare soldiers to continue their mission despite a biological attack so they can deter adversaries from using such weapons in the first place.

Demonstrating that biological threats don't necessarily prevent U.S. forces from fighting could reduce the military advantage an adversary might gain from deploying them, Tamasi said.