F
Australia Group
Chaired by Australia, the “Australia Group” (AG) is an informal forum of states whose goal is to discourage and impede chemical weapons (CW) proliferation by harmonizing national export controls on CW precursor chemicals, sharing information on target countries, and seeking other ways to curb the use of CW.
The Group was formed in 1984 as a result of CW use in the Iran-Iraq war. Members meet annually in Paris, where the 1925 Geneva Protocol is deposited. The Group's actions are viewed as complementary measures in support of the 1925 Geneva Protocol, the 1972 Biological and Toxins Weapons Convention and the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention.
There are presently 30 members of the Group, including: EC-12, Australia, Argentina, Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Iceland, New Zealand, Japan, Canada, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, Poland, Romania, the Slovak Republic, South Korea, and the United States. Requests by other states to join the Group are considered on a case-by-case basis.
The Group has no charter or constitution. It operates by consensus. On December 10, 1992, the AG issued its first joint background paper on the Group's activities.
The Group has established common export controls for chemical and biological weapons nonproliferation purposes. For CW, members of the AG control a list of 54 chemical precursors and a list of CW-related production equipment as well. For BW, members have established export controls on certain microorganisms, toxins, and equipment that could be used in a BW program.
In tandem with export controls, the AG has periodically used warning mechanisms to sensitize its public to CBW proliferation. The Group has issued an informal “warning list” of dual-use CW precursors and bulk chemicals, and on CW-related equipment. Members develop and share the warning lists with their chemical industries and ask industry to report on any suspicious transactions. The AG has also used an approach to warn industry, the scientific community, and other relevant groups of the risk of inadvertently aiding BW proliferation.
The Group's meetings focus on sharing information about national export controls, considering proposals for “harmonization”—the adoption of common controls by all members on chemical precursors, equipment, biological weapons related materials, and considering other measures to address CBW proliferation and use.
LIST OF DUAL-USE BIOLOGICAL EQUIPMENT FOR EXPORT CONTROL
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Complete containment facilities at P3, P4 containment level
Complete containment facilities that meet the criteria for P3 or P4 (BL3, BL4, L3, L4) containment as specified in the WHO Laboratory Biosafety manual (Geneva, 1983) are subject to export control.
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Fermenters *
Fermenters capable of cultivation of pathogenic micro-organisms, or viruses or of toxin production, without the propagation of aerosols, and having all the following characteristics:
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Capacity equal to or greater than 100 litres.
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* Sub-groups of fermenters include bioreactors, chemostats and continuous-flow systems.
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Centrifugal Separators *
Centrifugal separators capable of the continuous separation of pathogenic microorganisms, without the propagation of aerosols, and having all the following characteristics:
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Flow rate greater than 100 litres per hour;
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Components of polished stainless steel or titanium;
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Double or multiple sealing joints within the steam containment area; and
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Capable of in-situ steam sterilization in a closed state.
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* Centrifugal separators include decanters.
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Cross-flow filtration equipment
Cross-flow filtration equipment capable of continuous separation of pathogenic microorganisms, viruses, toxins, and cell cultures without the propagation of aerosols, having all the following characteristics:
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Capable of in situ sterilization.
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Freeze-drying equipment
Steam sterilizable freeze-drying equipment with a condensor capacity greater than 50 kg of ice in 24 hours and less than 1000 kg of ice in 24 hours.
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Equipment that incorporates or is contained in P3 or P4 (BL3, BL4, L3, L4) containment housing, as follows:
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Independently ventilated protective full or half suits; and
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Class III biological safety cabinets or isolators with similar performance standards.
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Aerosol inhalation chambers
Chambers designed for aerosol challenge testing with microorganisms, viruses, or toxins and having a capacity of 1 cubic metre or greater.
The experts propose that the following items be included in awareness-raising guidelines to industry:
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Equipment for the microencapsulation of live microorganisms and toxins in the range of 1-10 µm particle size, specifically:
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Interfacial polycondensors; and
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Phase separators.
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Fermenters of less than 100 litre capacity with special emphasis on aggregate orders or designs for use in combined systems.
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Conventional or turbulent air-flow clean-air rooms and self-contained fan-HEPA filter units that may be used for P3 or P4 (BL3, BL4, L3, L4) containment facilities.
LIST OF BIOLOGICAL AGENTS FOR EXPORT CONTROL CORE LIST1
Viruses
V1. Chikungunya virus
V2. Congo-Crimean haemorrhagic fever virus
V3. Dengue fever virus
V4. Eastern equine encephalitis virus
V5. Ebola virus
V6. Hantaan virus
V7. Junin virus
V8. Lassa fever virus
V9. Lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus
V10. Machupo virus
V11. Marburg virus
V12. Monkeypox virus
V13. Rift Valley fever virus
V14. Tick-borne encephalitis virus (Russian spring-summer encephalitis virus)
V15. Variola virus
V16. Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus
V17. Western equine encephalitis virus
V18. White pox
V19. Yellow fever virus
V20. Japanese encephalitis virus
Rickettsiae
R1. Coxiella burnetii
R2. Bartonella quintana (Rochalimea quintana, Rickettsia quintana)
R3. Rickettsia prowasecki
R4. Rickettsia rickettsii
Bacteria
B1. Bacillus anthracis
B2. Brucella abortus
B3. Brucella melitensis
B4. Brucella suis
B5. Chlamydia psittaci
B6. Clostridium botulinum
B7. Francisella tularensis
B8. Burkholderia mallei (Pseudomonas mallei)
B9. Burkholderia pseudomallei (Pseudomonas pseudomallei)
B10. Salmonella typhi
B11. Shigella dysenteriae
B12. Vibrio cholerae
B13. Yersinia pestis
Genetically modified microorganisms
G1. Genetically modified microorganisms or genetic elements that contain nucleic acid sequences associated with pathogenicity and are derived from organisms in the core list.
G2. Genetically modified microorganisms or genetic elements that contain nucleic acid sequences coding for any of the toxins in the core list or their subunits.
Toxins as follows and subunits thereof:2
T1. Botulinum toxins
T2. Clostridium perfringens toxins
T3. Conotoxin
T4. Ricin
T5. Saxitoxin
T6. Shiga toxin
T7. Staphylococcus aureus toxins
T8. Tetrodotoxin
T9. Verotoxin
T10. Microcystin (Cyanginosin)
T11. Aflatoxins
1. Except where the agent is in the form of a vaccine.
2. Excluding immunotoxins.
WARNING LIST1
Viruses
WV1. Kyasanur Forest virus
WV2. Louping ill virus
WV3. Murray Valley encephalitis virus
WV4. Omsk haemorrhagic fever virus
WV5. Oropouche virus
WV6. Powassan virus
WV7. Rocio virus
WV8. St. Louis encephalitis virus
Bacteria
WB1. Clostridium perfringens *
WB2. Clostridium tetani *
WB3. Enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli, serotype 0157, and other verotoxin-producing serotypes
WB4. Legionella pneumophila
WB5. Yersinia pseudotuberculosis
Genetically modified microorganisms
WG1. Genetically modified microorganisms or genetic elements that contain nucleic acid sequences associated with pathogenicity and are derived from organisms in the warning list.
WG2. Genetically modified microorganisms or genetic elements that contain nucleic acid sequences coding for any of the toxins in the warning list or their subunits.
Toxins as follows and subunits thereof:2
WT1. Abrin
WT2. Cholera toxin
WT3. Tetanus toxin
WT4. Trichothecene mycotoxins
WT5. Modeccin
WT6. Volkensin
WT7. Viscum album lectin 1 (Viscumin)
* The Australia Group recognizes that these organisms are ubiquitous, but, as they have been acquired in the past as part of biological weapons programs, they are worthy of special caution.
1. Except where the agent is in the form of a vaccine.
2. Excluding immunotoxins.
LIST OF ANIMAL PATHOGENS FOR EXPORT CONTROL1
Viruses
AV1. African swine fever virus
AV2. Avian influenza virus2
AV3. Bluetongue virus
AV4. Foot and mouth disease virus
AV5. Goatpox virus
AV6. Herpesvirus (Aujeszky's disease)
AV7. Hog cholera virus (synonym: swine fever virus)
AV8. Lyssa virus
AV9. Newcastle disease virus
AV10. Peste des petits ruminants virus
AV11. Porcine enterovirus type 9 (synonym: swine vesicular disease virus)
AV12. Rinderpest virus
AV13. Sheeppox virus
AV14. Teschen disease virus
AV15. Vesicular stomatitis virus
1. Except where the agent is in the form of a vaccine. |
2. This includes only those avian influenza viruses of high pathogenicity as defined in EC Directive 92/401EC: “Type A viruses with an IVPI (intravenous pathogenicity index) in 6 week old chickens of greater than 1.2, or Type A viruses HS or H7 subtype for which nucleotide sequencing has demonstrated multiple basic amino acids at the cleavage site of haemagglutinin.” |
Bacteria
AB3. Mycoplasma mycoides
Genetically-modified microorganisms
AG1. Genetically modified microorganisms or genetic elements that contain nucleic acid sequences associated with pathogenicity and are derived from organisms in the list.
CONTROL LIST OF PLANT PATHOGENS FOR EXPORT CONTROL
CORE LIST
Bacteria
PB1. Xanthomonas albilineans
PB2. Xanthomonas campestris pv. citri
Fungi
PF1. Colletotrichum coffeanum var. virulans (Colletotrichum kanawae)
PF2. Cochliobolus miyabeanus (Helminthosporium oryzae)
PF3. Microcyclus ulei (synonym Dothidella ulei)
PF4. Puccinia graminis (synonym Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici)
PF5. Puccinia striiformis (synonym Pucciniaglumarum)
PF6. Pyricularia grisea/Pyricularia oryzae
Genetically modified Microorganisms
PG1. Genetically modified microorganisms or genetic elements that contain nucleic acid sequences associated with pathogenicity derived from the plant pathogens identified on the export control list.
ITEMS FOR INCLUSION IN AWARENESS-RAISING GUIDELINES
Bacteria
PWB1. Xanthomonas campestris pv. oryzae
PWB2. Xylella fastidiosa
Fungi
PWF1. Deuterophoma tracheiphila (synonym Phoma tracheiphila)
PWF2. Monilia rorei (synonym Moniliophthora rorei)
Viruses
PWV1. Banana bunchy top virus
Genetically modified microorganisms
PWG1. Genetically modified microorganisms or genetic elements that contain nucleic acid sequences associated with pathogenicity derived from the plant pathogens identified on the awareness-raising list.
Source: U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency