Biolabs in Ukraine
WHO says it advised Ukraine to destroy pathogens in health labs to prevent disease spread
The World Health Organization advised Ukraine to destroy 'high-threat pathogens' in the country's public health laboratories in order to prevent "any potential spills" that might infect the population during the Russian invasion, Reuters reports
Current Era: March 10th 2022
Source: Reuters
The UN Security Council convenes on Friday 11th March 2022, to discuss what Moscow claims are “the military biological activities of the U.S. on the territory of Ukraine,” allegations vehemently denied by the Biden administration.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) has advised Ukraine to destroy high-threat pathogens housed in the country's public health laboratories to prevent "any potential spills" that would spread disease among the population.
Since 1991, a unit of the U.S. Department of Defense has cooperated with former satellites of the Soviet Union, including Ukraine, to secure and take apart weapons of mass destruction that have been left behind.
The Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction Program is intended to “support defense and military cooperation with the objective of preventing proliferation,” according to the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, a U.S. non-profit.
The Department of Defense and Ukraine’s Health Ministry then signed a treaty in 2005 to prevent any proliferation of pathogens in facilities in Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa and elsewhere that could be used in biological weapons.
[} UPDATED 16th March
] TIMELINE | NATO/ОДКБ / spec ops
7th - 11th March 2022
[] March 7th /
The Chinese Foreign Ministry this month claimed: "The US has 336 labs in 30 countries under its control, including 26 in Ukraine alone.”
Subsequently, the Russian Foreign Ministry asserted that “Russia obtained documents proving that Ukrainian biological laboratories located near Russian borders worked on development of components of biological weapons” revealed during Russia's special operation on Ukraine.
This includes funding of two new biolabs in Kyiv and Odesa, noted from the Register of U.S. Federal Contracts - one of the oldest refurbished soviet labs is located in Kharkiv, the country's second-largest city.
Contract Award Date: Sep 17, 2021
Contract Award Number: HDTRA118D0007
[] March 8th / Bloomberg
Bloomberg reported that China had accused the US military of operating "dangerous" biolabs in Ukraine
"U.S. biolabs in Ukraine have indeed attracted much attention recently. All dangerous pathogens in Ukraine must be stored in these labs and all research activities are led by the U.S. side." " said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian
Zhao called on "relevant sides to ensure the safety of these labs" and said that "the U.S., as the party that knows the labs the best, should disclose specific information as soon as possible, including which viruses are stored and what research has been conducted."
Subsequently Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), hoping to debunk growing claims that there are chemical weapons labs in Ukraine, smugly asked Nuland: -
[Transcript]
Rubio :
“Does Ukraine have chemical or biological weapons?
Nuland:
“uh, Ukraine has, uh, biological research facilities.”
“We are now in fact quite concerned that Russian troops, Russian forces, may be seeking to, uh, gain control of [those labs], so we are working with the Ukrainiahhhns [sic] on how they can prevent any of those research materials from falling into the hands of Russian forces should they approach” — [interruption by Sen. Rubio]
This was followed by a hasty rejoiner by Nuland
"There is no doubt in my mind Senator, and it is classic Russian technique to blame on the other guy what they're planning to do themselves."
Analysis: Any attempt to claim that Ukraine's biological facilities are just benign and standard medical labs is negated by Nuland's explicitly grave concern that “Russian forces, may be seeking to gain control of” those facilities and that the U.S. Government therefore is, right this minute, “working with the Ukrainians on how they can prevent any of those research materials from falling into the hands of Russian forces.”
It suggests such facilities may habour either advanced biological weapons or dual-use “research” that has the potential to be weaponized, which further confirms the existence of such prior programs under the DTRA in Ukraine - going back as far as pre 2002.
The joint US/Ukraine biological research facilities described by Nuland undertaking “defensive research” can, and sometimes is, easily converted into the banned weapons themselves.
[] March 10th / WHO & DNI
Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told the Senate Intelligence Committee that Ukraine "operates a little over a dozen" biolabs for biodefense and public health response. She said the U.S. has, at least in the past, "provided assistance" to the labs "in the context of biosafety."
"We do not assess that Ukraine is pursuing either biological weapons or nuclear weapons," Haines said. "This influence campaign is consistent with long-standing Russian efforts to accuse the United States of sponsoring bioweapons. ... This is a classic move by the Russians."
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), the vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Thursday that Russia has been "laying out" the idea that the U.S. has harbored bioweapons at labs in Ukraine for months.
The WHO said it has collaborated with Ukrainian public health labs for several years to “promote security practices that help prevent "accidental or deliberate release of pathogens."
"As part of this work, WHO has strongly recommended to the Ministry of Health in Ukraine and other responsible bodies to destroy high-threat pathogens to prevent any potential spills," said the UN agency.
[] March 11th / UNSC
The UN Security Council will convene on Friday at Russia's request to discuss what Moscow claims are “the military biological activities of the U.S. on the territory of Ukraine,” allegations vehemently denied by the Biden administration.
The Russian request, announced by the first deputy U.N. ambassador, Dmitry Polyansky, follows the U.S. rejection of Russian accusations that Ukraine is running chemical and biological labs with U.S. support.
The U.N. announced Thursday evening that the meeting will take place at 10am EST but then pushed it back to 11am EST. U.N. disarmament chief Izumi Nakamitsu and U.N. political chief Rosemary DiCarlo are scheduled to brief the council.
[] U.S. Cooperative Threat Reduction
The US has multiple programs under the aegis of cooperative threat reduction (CTR), seeking to keep chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) weapons away from rogue nations or terrorist groups. These programs involve a DOD-centered effort to include projects funded by the
Department of Defense (DOD), the State Department, the Department of Energy (DOE), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Over the past 27 years, there are multiple cooperative DOD and DOE programs via the U.S. threat reduction and nonproliferation assistance with partners around the world (Russia, Middle East and North Africa).
”Congress initiated the U.S. threat reduction and nonproliferation assistance to the Soviet Union in November 1991. A failed coup in Moscow in August 1991 and the subsequent disintegration of the Soviet Union had raised concerns about the safety and security of Soviet nuclear weapons."
The DOD has helped Russia secure and eliminate chemical weapons by supporting the design and construction of a chemical weapons destruction facility at Shchuch’ye. DOD and the State Department has also provided assistance to address concerns about the proliferation of pathogens that might be used in biological weapons1.
Since June 2013, multiple CTR programs between Russia & U.S. have wound down after the expiration of the Memorandum of Understanding that governed DOD’s cooperation with Russia; although there is ongoing cooperation with a bilateral protocol under the Multilateral Nuclear Environmental Program in the Russian Federation Agreement (MNEPR).
[] Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA)
Established in 1998, DTRA enables Department of Defense (DoD), the U.S. Government, and International Partners to counter and deter Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) and Emerging Threats. The DTRA has since evolved from legacy CTR programs to develop knowledge and capabilities to counter and defeat not only chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear threats, but further maturing the DoD counter-Improvised Explosive Device (C-IED) and counter-small Unmanned Aerial Systems (sUAS) portfolios.
The Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) has funded a $ 2.1 billion military program– known as the Cooperative Biological Engagement Program (CBEP), and these bio labs are located in the former Soviet Union countries such as Georgia and Ukraine, the Middle East, South East Asia and Africa.
The US has denied the allegations - issuing (among other things) a statement [10th March 2022] that "The United States does not have chemical or biological weapons labs in Ukraine," (sic) adding that America "does not develop or possess chemical and biological weapons anywhere."
The Evolution of Cooperative Threat Reduction:
November 23, 2015
Congressional Research Service
https://crsreports.congress.gov
R43143
The Evolution of Cooperative Threat Reduction: Issues for Congress
Congressional Research Service
The United States supports global programs that are designed to prevent the smuggling or illegal export of CBRN materials and technology. The State Department and DOE have also developed programs that are designed to reduce the risk that the weapons scientists would sell their knowledge to nations seeking their own CBRN weapons.
These programs seek to prevent terrorists from exploiting scientists, other personnel, or materials to develop these weapons. The programs also train not only scientists, but other lab personnel about international security standards and improve personnel reliability programs to address the “insider threat.”