The Soviet Communist Party, in conjunction with the KGB, orchestrated, directed, and oversaw the vast BW enterprise and indoctrinated its scientists into believing that their work was vital to national security of the state and for the protection of the Soviet Union against an attack from the West. The state directed the postings and assignments of scientists and lured them with prospects of higher salaries, good equipment, and interesting research. The culture of secrecy, actively promoted by the regime, added an element of prestige to participation in the program. At the same time, the state punished those who refused to join in or who voiced moral reservations. Furthermore, the government actively spread the propaganda that the Soviet BW program was for defensive purposes only – a lie that many within the program seemed to buy. As a result, some of the participants thought of their work as benevolent, a job that was aimed at saving lives and promoting the security of the state. Even when the scientists could not deny the true intentions of the program or the fact that they were creating deadly agents meant to kill, they often justified their participation by either arguing that their work was patriotic or that they had no choice but to participate for fear of negative repercussions in case they refused.