DISINFO: Washington has created laboratories for military biological research in the states bordering Russia
SUMMARY
The US continues to actively implement military biological programmes aimed at creating artificial pathogens and microorganisms resistant to antibiotics, standard vaccines, and traditional therapies. On the territory of Ukraine and in other states neighbouring Russia, Washington has deployed a network of biological laboratories in which military-biological research and experiments are carried out using biomaterials, including those taken from the Slavic peoples.
RESPONSE
A recurring conspiracy theory about alleged US biolabs in countries bordering Russia.
The claim is an attempt to advance the long-discredited pro-Kremlin narrative about US-funded bio laboratories with military purposes in Ukraine and other countries, which pro-Kremlin outlets and Russian authorities continue promoting despite repeated debunking.
The claim is also one of the many attempts to justify the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
There are dozens of civilian public health laboratories in Ukraine, but there is nothing sinister about their work. Some of these laboratories receive funding from the US, the EU, and the World Health Organization (WHO). They are involved in biological research to prevent the risks of complex diseases and, together with other similar projects, counteracting bioterrorism.
There are no US biological warfare laboratories in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, or Armenia. These countries are cooperating with the US Department of Defence's Biological Threat Reduction Programme (BTRP): the goal of the BTRP is to safeguard global health by preventing and containing the outbreak of infectious diseases and establishing high international standards in biological security.
The allegation about collecting biological samples of Slavic peoples ignores the fact that a biological weapon targeting specific ethnic genomes remains in the realm of hypothesis for a number of reasons, such as the challenge of obtaining genetic markers exclusive to a particular ethnic group.
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