Biological & Chemical
What it is. Use precursors, supply chains, labs, and cover programs to create outsized harm with plausible deniability. The target bleeds resources—health, police, courts, budgets—while the source points elsewhere.
Operating model
- Actors: chemical suppliers, front exporters, cut-outs, labs, logistics firms, universities, NGOs.
- Levers: precursor controls, mail parcels, pill-mill fronts, research grants, standards and waivers.
- Mechanisms: flood inputs → fragment routes → spike demand → blame chaos → launder profits.
- Escalation ladder: local overdoses → regional spikes → national strain on services.
- Success metrics: workforce degradation, fiscal drain, political anger turned inward.
White Powder Treaty
Domain: Biological & Chemical · Stratagems: 3, 5, 21
Problem / betrayal. Cities bury sons while exporters ship “legal” precursors and pill gear by the ton. Treasury, DOJ, and FinCEN have already named firms and playbooks. CISA.
How it happened. Fragment the chain: precursors → parcel hops → local finishing. Finance through fronts and exchangers; hide behind “industrial inputs.” FinCEN’s advisory and trend analysis spell it out. Federal Communications Commission.
The men behind it. Indicted chemical suppliers and executives; sanctions designations hit nodes and wallets. Department of Justice.
Consequences. Labor lost; budgets drained; families break. FCC Documents.
Warning. Treat it like war, not weather.
Counter-Orders (30 days)
- Audit: vendor lists for precursors/presses; map to FinCEN red flags. Federal Communications Commission.
- Inoculate: naloxone + test strips; 4-hour spike advisories with chain-of-custody SOP. FCC Documents.
- Isolate: align seizures/sanctions to OFAC lists; carriers briefed using advisory language. CISA.
Tactic clusters (curated, non-repetitive)
1) Precursor Flooding
Ship chemicals and parts, not finished product. Harder to interdict, easier to deny.
Stratagems: 5 Loot a Burning House, 3 Kill with a Borrowed Knife
Application: Route precursors through multiple jurisdictions; exploit weak export screens and postal gaps.
Countermeasures: Joint precursor controls, end-use attestation, postal analytics, named-person liability.
2) Cover Research
Mask end use as “public health” or “agri” work while building know-how.
Stratagems: 14 Borrow a Corpse to Raise the Spirit, 25 Replace the Beams with Rotten Timbers
Application: Fund lab partnerships and exchange programs that yield protocols and routes.
Countermeasures: IRB/export-control audits, conflict disclosures, kill-switch clauses, site visits.
3) Distribution by Friction
Use fragmented micro-routes that overwhelm enforcement.
Stratagems: 6 Make a Sound in the East, Strike in the West, 21 Shed the Cicada’s Shell
Application: Switch carriers and hubs weekly; mix legal cargo with illicit micro-batches.
Countermeasures: Parcel scoring, randomization in inspections, fused PD/EMS data for early heatmaps.
4) Community Hollowing
Target labor pools and logistics towns. Break families and force local budgets to triage.
Stratagems: 24 Borrow the Road to Conquer Guo, 13 Beat the Grass to Startle the Snake
Application: Push product where jobs are fragile; hide behind charity fronts and “treatment” scams.
Countermeasures: Naloxone + test strips at scale, verified treatment providers, civil RICO vs. fronts.
5) Evidence Decay
Exploit poor chain-of-custody to collapse prosecutions.
Stratagems: 22 Shut the Door to Catch the Thief (on the defenders), 27 Feign Madness but Keep Your Balance
Application: Force rushed raids and sloppy handling; win on suppression, not merits.
Countermeasures: Standard kits, camera-logged custody, cross-trained labs, fast public advisories.
Failure modes & risks
- Misattribution: wrong source named; diplomacy derails the fix.
- Overreach: blanket bans hit critical industries and hospitals.
- Complacency: wins fade without drills and fresh intel.
Related: Stratagems 3, 5, 14, and 21 explain how deniable supply chains bleed a rival without open war.