“Experiments with the bat coronavirus are being carried out” in secret biolaboratories in Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry claims.
What sounds very absurd is currently being claimed by Igor Konashenkov, spokesman for the Russian Ministry of Defense, and has been taken over by the Russian media .
These false statements about Ukrainian biolaboratories are regularly used as Russian propaganda by Kremlin media and Russian officials to argue the need for Russia to invade Ukraine.
Secret biolaboratories in Ukraine
There are said to be secret biolaboratories in Ukraine that are financed by the USA.
“Experiments with samples of the bat coronavirus” will now be carried out in these. According to Konashenkov, the purpose of these experiments or research is to create a mechanism for the covert spread of deadly pathogens.
He bases his claims on supposedly existing documents that show that the USA is planning research into pathogens of birds, bats and reptiles in 2022. These are supposed to take place in Ukraine and find ways to transmit dangerous diseases such as African swine fever or anthrax (anthrax). These documents are expected to be published “in the near future.”
Statement from Washington
Ned Price, spokesman for the US State Department, spoke out about these allegations.
False claims from Kremlin officials about alleged US chemical and biological weapons labs in Ukraine are total nonsense. It is exactly the kind of disinformation we've seen Russia use repeatedly to attempt to justify its horrific actions in Ukraine. https://t.co/UBBX26mhaO
— Ned Price (@StateDeptSpox) March 9, 2022
“False claims by Kremlin officials about alleged U.S. chemical and biological weapons laboratories in Ukraine are complete nonsense. It is exactly the type of disinformation that Russia has repeatedly used to justify its terrible actions in Ukraine.”
In his tweet, Ned Price refers to a press release from March 9, 2020 :
“The Kremlin is deliberately spreading outright lies that the United States and Ukraine are conducting chemical and biological weapons activities in Ukraine.
We also saw PRC officials repeating these conspiracy theories. This Russian disinformation is total nonsense and is not the first time that Russia has made up such false claims against another country. Furthermore, these claims have been conclusively and repeatedly debunked over many years. As we have said all along, Russia is inventing false pretexts to justify its own terrible actions in Ukraine.
The United States does not own or operate chemical or biological laboratories in Ukraine, does not fully comply with its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Biological Weapons Convention, and does not develop or possess such weapons anywhere. It is Russia that has active chemical and biological weapons programs and is violating the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Biological Weapons Convention. After all, Russia has a track record of accusing the West of the very crimes that Russia itself commits. These tactics are an obvious ploy by Russia to attempt to justify further deliberate, unprovoked and unwarranted attacks on Ukraine. We fully expect that Russia will continue to double down on these types of claims with further unfounded accusations.”
Similar allegations in 2020
As early as 2020, there were discussions about possible US-funded biolaboratories in Ukraine where the coronavirus could have originated. These reports were spread by the “DPR” and deputies from the “Opposition Platform – For Life” party.
Among them is Viktor Medvedchuk, the godfather of Russian President Putin who fled from Ukraine. US Embassy in Ukraine issued a statement regarding these claims in April 2020. Cooperation with Ukraine is confirmed, but for the purpose of consolidating and protecting safety-relevant pathogens and toxins. This will allow Ukraine to detect and report outbreaks caused by dangerous pathogens before they pose a threat to security or stability.
“Our joint efforts help ensure that dangerous pathogens do not fall into the wrong hands. We are proud to work with the Ministry of Health, the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection, the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the Ministry of Defense to make us all safer,” the US Embassy continued.
Conclusion
The accusation that experiments are being carried out on bats, birds and reptiles in biolaboratories in Ukraine in order to find deadly pathogens is a false claim.
This in turn is used as Russian propaganda to reinforce the need to invade Ukraine.
You might also be interested in: Maternity hospital in Mariupol: Ukrainian Azov battalion on the roof?
Source: US Department of State , stopfake.org , sputnik.by , news.ru
Notes:
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