Production of WMD

The difficulty of producing WMD is one of the most important barriers to the spread of these weapons. The U.S. Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) prepared an authoritative review, Technologies Underlying Weapons of Mass Destruction,
of the steps needed to produce nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons.

Nuclear Weapons

Nuclear weapons are the most challenging WMD to manufacture. Many complex facilities are needed to produce the highly enriched uranium or plutonium for the core of a nuclear weapon. In addition, significant technical skills are required to design and manufacture the nuclear weapons themselves. A country that can acquire, rather than having to manufacture, the explosive or fissile nuclear material can speed its development of a nuclear weapon. Russia, for example, possesses massive stockpiles of highly enriched uranium and plutonium that are not yet fully secured against theft. If even small quantities of this material were smuggled out of Russia to a country seeking nuclear weapons, that country could greatly accelerate its production of nuclear arms.

Biological Weapons

Biological Weapons are also difficult to produce. Obtaining biological agents and producing them in bulk is only moderately complicated. Preparing these agents for use in weapons, however, is quite complex. Producing the correct-sized particles to be inhaled and retained in the victims' lungs is especially difficult. Another major challenge is ensuring that the agent (usually a living microorganism) will survive during storage and delivery. This problem arises after the agent is placed in a weapon, such as a bomb or missile warhead.

Chemical Weapons

Chemical weapons are somewhat less difficult to produce. To have a significant impact, however, these agents must be dispersed in large volumes and hence must be produced on a large scale. This aspect of chemical weapons production introduces additional technical challenges.

Further Reading -
Nuclear Weapons:

	NTI Study Guide, "Introduction to Nuclear Nonproliferation"
	Owen R. Cote, Jr., "Fissile Material and Nuclear Weapons Design"
	NTI, CNS, Nuclear Terrorism Tutorial

Further Reading - Biological Weapons:

	NTI, CNS, Biological Warfare Tutorial
	W. Seth Carus, Bioterrorism and Biocrimes: The Illicit Use of Biological Agents Since 1900
	Arms Control Association, Biological Weapons
	NOVA, Susan Lewis, "History of Biowarfare"

Further Reading - Chemical Weapons:

	CRS, Paul Kerr, "Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Weapons and Missiles: Status and Trends"
	NTI, CNS, Chemical Warfare Tutorial