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Principles & Guidelines

The Global Partnership, an international forum for coordination and delivery of programming to prevent CBRN warfare, terrorism and proliferation, follows a set of Principles and Guidelines that were established at the 2002 Kananaskis Summit and updated under Canada's Presidency in 2025.

The Global Partnership operates based on the following core principles:

  1. Promote the adoption, universalization, effective implementation and, where necessary, strengthening of multilateral treaties and other international instruments whose aim it is to prevent the proliferation, illicit acquisition, or financing of weapons of mass destruction; strengthen the institutions designed to implement these instruments.

  2. Develop and maintain appropriate effective measures to account for and secure chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) materials in production, use, storage and domestic and international transport; provide assistance, consistent with each member’s own laws and processes, to states lacking sufficient resources to account for and secure these items.

  3. Develop and maintain appropriate effective physical and cyber protection measures applied to facilities which house such items, including defence in depth; provide assistance to states lacking sufficient resources to protect their facilities.

  4. Develop and maintain effective border and port controls, law enforcement efforts and international cooperation to detect, deter and interdict in cases of illicit trafficking in CBRN weapons and materials, as well as to detect and respond to proliferation financing; provide assistance to states lacking sufficient expertise or resources to strengthen their capacity to address activities associated with CBRN proliferation.

  5. Develop, review and maintain effective national export and transshipment controls over items on multilateral export control lists, as well as items that are not identified on such lists but which may nevertheless contribute to the development, production or use of CBRN weapons and missiles, with particular consideration of end-user, catch-all and brokering aspects; provide assistance to states lacking the legal and regulatory infrastructure, implementation experience and/or resources to develop their export and transshipment control systems in this regard.

  6. Adopt and strengthen efforts to responsibly manage and control stocks of fissile materials and dispose of those no longer required for defence or other purposes, eliminate all chemical weapons, and minimize and secure holdings of dangerous biological pathogens and toxins.

  7. Identify, assess, and develop effective measures to mitigate other WMD-relevant threats as they evolve, including those posed by emerging disruptive technologies and disinformation, while also leveraging novel tools to strengthen WMD threat reduction, such as artificial intelligence.

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    Global Partnership Principles

    Global Partnership Guidelines

    The Global Partnership utilizes the following set of nine guidelines for Cooperation Projects. Cooperation projects under this initiative will be decided and implemented, subject to and consistent with international obligations and domestic laws of participating partners, as well as GP member country priorities, within the appropriate bilateral and multilateral legal frameworks.

    • Effective monitoring, auditing and transparency measures and procedures will be required in order to ensure that cooperative activities meet mutually decided objectives (including irreversibility as necessary), to confirm work performance, to account for the funds expended and to provide for adequate access for donor representatives to work sites;
    • The projects will be implemented in a responsible, safe and environmentally sound manner based on GP member priorities and will maintain the highest appropriate level of safety;
    • Clearly defined milestones will be developed for each project, including the option of suspending or terminating a project if the milestones are not met;
    • The material, equipment, technology, services and expertise provided will be solely for peaceful purposes and, unless otherwise decided in writing, will be used only for the purposes of implementing the projects and will not be transferred. Adequate measures of physical protection and cyber security will also be applied to prevent theft or sabotage;
    • All governments that have Cooperation Projects implemented in their countries will take necessary steps to ensure that the support provided will be considered free technical assistance and will be exempt from taxes, duties, levies and other charges;
    • Procurement of goods and services will be conducted in accordance with national security requirements and relevant anti-corruption standards and principles, including transparency, competition, and objective criteria in decision-making;
    • All governments will take necessary steps to ensure that adequate liability protections from claims related to the cooperation will be provided for donor countries and their personnel and contractors;  
    • Appropriate privileges and immunities will be provided for government donor representatives working on cooperation projects; and
    • Measures will be put in place to ensure effective protection of sensitive information, research and intellectual property.

    Why We Work

    The proliferation and use, and threat of use, of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) constitute one of the gravest threats to international peace and security. Furthermore, false and misleading information around WMDs is a severe threat.

    How We Work

    Global Partnership members have each committed to contribute their talents, expertise, resources, networks, and influence to deliver tangible WMD threat reduction programing.

    Principles and Guidelines

    The Global Partnership follows a set of Principles and Guidelines that were established at the 2002 Kananaskis Summit and updated under Canada's Presidency in 2025.