Allegation

Abstract

Abstract Chapter 5 considers the allegations of bioweapon use made against the US during the Korean War. The chapter explores the influence of the taboo at this time with particular reference to the strengthening international perceptions of the prohibition at the United Nations, how perceptions of violation can reinforce a taboo, and the expression of the taboo within strategic narratives. The chapter additionally assesses a potential challenge to the taboo’s relevance: the clandestine introduction of a first-use biowarfare policy in 1956 by the US. While the policy could be interpreted to undermine the taboo, the chapter contextualizes this first-use commitment to show that military strategy was still determined by, and failed to pose a decisive challenge to, the expectations of the taboo.