MOSCOW, 3 Sep - RIA Novosti. Russia next week in Geneva will present documentary evidence of violations by the United States and Ukraine of the articles of the Convention on the Prohibition of Bioweapons, said Igor Kirillov, head of the radiation, chemical and biological protection troops of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.
"At the initiative of the Russian Federation, a meeting of the States parties to the Convention on the Prohibition of Biological and Toxin Weapons (BTWC) will be held next week on the issue of non-compliance by the United States and Ukraine with obligations under this international treaty. During the event, documentary evidence of their violation of articles I and IV of the Convention will be presented," Kirillov said at a briefing on Saturday.
"We want the organizations responsible for compliance with the Convention and the world community to pay attention to a number of threats of a biological nature," the general added.
Firstly, there are currently more than 50 biolabs modernized at the expense of the Pentagon and controlled by it in close proximity to the borders of the Russian Federation, Kirillov noted. In total, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, 336 biological laboratories in 30 countries of the world are under the control of the US military department, the general added.
"At the same time, their activities are accompanied by a worsening of the epidemic situation for particularly dangerous and economically significant infections, as well as the appearance of infectious diseases atypical for a particular region," Kirillov said.
Thus, since 2010, in the territories bordering Ukraine, the Russian Federation has recorded an increase in the incidence of brucellosis, Congo-Crimean fever, West Nile fever, African swine fever, as well as an uncharacteristic expansion of vector ranges, the general noted.
Russia, as a responsible participant in the BTWC, is fully aware of the full range of threats associated with the possible consequences of its violation when carrying out work in Ukrainian biological laboratories, Kirillov added.
"We have become aware of information about US-funded biological research on the territory of Ukraine. The order of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine dated February 24, 2022 on the emergency destruction of collections of pathogenic microorganisms increased our concerns about a possible violation of the requirements of Articles I and IV of the BTWC in the course of work commissioned by the Pentagon. The materials received served as the basis for the Russian Federation to investigate the biological activities of the United States on the territory of Ukraine," the general said.
According to Kirillov, research in Ukrainian biological laboratories was carried out in accordance with the agreement "On cooperation in preventing the spread of pathogens, technologies and knowledge that can be used in the development of biological weapons" from 2005 between the US Military Department and the Ministry of Health of Ukraine.
The total US spending on biological programs in Ukraine exceeded $ 250 million, and the work was coordinated by the Department of Threat Reduction of the US Department of Defense (DTRA), the research was conducted in secrecy with limited access of Ukrainian specialists to information and premises, the general noted.
