According to the US "Atomic Scientists Bulletin" website reported on the 25th, Robert Pope, the head of the US "Biological Synergy Program" project that set up biological laboratories overseas, said that Russia's special military operations against the eastern region of Ukraine may endanger laboratories related to the United States in Ukraine and cause dangerous pathogens to leak. Pope claimed that since the start of the military operation, the U.S. side has not been able to contact the biosecurity personnel of these laboratories in Ukraine.
A laboratory in Kiev, Ukraine. Image source: Screenshot of the report
The U.S. side claims that these laboratories in Ukraine are not biological weapons research and development facilities, but are public health and animal health facilities like other laboratories funded by the U.S. government and operated and managed by the host country. Pope claims that these laboratories mainly conduct peaceful scientific research and disease surveillance. But Russia has long accused the United States of setting up laboratories in former Soviet unions such as Ukraine and Georgia for dangerous research such as chemical and biological weapons.
Pope warned that the War between Russia and Ukraine could put pathogens collected in these laboratories at risk of leakage. He said the pathogens were safe in the context of ensuring power supply and the presence of trained biosecurity personnel. However, if these laboratories are damaged by a military conflict, the situation may change.
It is reported that the pathogens in these laboratories are usually kept in a frozen state, so they do not have the ability to replicate and are contagious. If the lab loses power security or is damaged, the risk increases. "Once the electricity is lost, pathogens stored in the refrigerator heat up," Pope said. If the ventilation system is damaged, or the laboratory building itself is damaged, pathogens at room temperature can leak out of the laboratory, causing infection in the surrounding area. ”
Ukrainian soldiers standing guard on a bridge in Kiev. Image source: People's Vision
Pope believes that because the Russian side knows enough about the types of pathogens stored in the laboratories, the Russian military should not deliberately target weapons at these laboratories during military operations. But he fears the lab could be accidentally damaged in a military conflict.
Pope said the types of pathogens in laboratories across Ukraine vary, but some can be described as having "raised concerns" in the Ukrainian environment. He cites the African swine fever virus, which is highly contagious in pigs and has caused hundreds of outbreaks in Ukraine since 2012.
He claimed that some laboratories may have preserved strains of pathogens left over from the Soviet Biological weapons program, kept in freezers for "research purposes." He also said that there are still some pathogens that are mostly collected from nearby environments in order to conduct research, monitor diseases and develop vaccines against these pathogens.
Pope also stressed that none of these laboratories continue to research or produce biological and chemical weapons, but if some of them still have pathogen strains dating back to the U.S. Bio-Synergy Program, "I wouldn't be surprised."
The wreckage of a downed military plane on the streets of Kiev. Image source: People's Vision
According to previous reports, the "Biological Synergy Program" was established by the U.S. Department of Defense Threat Reduction Agency with a $2.1 billion investment, and the United States has set up more than 200 biological laboratories in 25 countries and regions, including Georgia and Ukraine, according to the project. Compared to the wide range of distribution, the work of these biological laboratories is slightly mysterious. According to a number of media reports, no one knows exactly what happened in the laboratories and what kind of experiments were carried out, and since the establishment of these laboratories, a series of infectious diseases in their countries have repeatedly aroused deep concern from all walks of life. A Political commentator in the country reported in September 2020 that atypical infectious diseases were rampant in Ukraine in 2009, 2011, 2014 and 2015, and a political commentator in the country said that if the location and time of the disease were to be mapped, it would inevitably reveal the fact that these places were all biological laboratories.
After Russia launched a special military operation against Ukraine, the US Embassy in Ukraine deleted the relevant documents on its official website on the 25th about the opening of biological laboratories in Kiev and Odessa. Russian experts believe that the laboratories opened by the United States in Ukraine pose a major threat to Russia, and the biological weapons they develop may eventually fall into the hands of Ukrainian nationalists.
Russian political analyst Bahyrov said that in addition to Ukraine's possible nuclear threat to Russia, Russia is also preparing to eliminate the biological threat posed by Ukraine in military operations. Russian President Vladimir Putin's announcement of a special military operation against Ukraine coincides with the U.S. plan to launch two new military biological laboratories in Kiev and Odessa. Previously, Putin warned of the dangers of the United States developing biological weapons near the Russian border.
Regarding the U.S. Embassy's deletion of the biological laboratory information, Bulgarian investigative journalist Getangieva believes that the deleted information will let the international community know about the biological laboratory established by the U.S. government, especially the Pentagon, in Ukraine. The U.S. Embassy in Ukraine realized that now Russia could find all these laboratories and investigate. The U.S. Embassy's response suggests that they are concerned about what they are doing in these labs.
Source: Central Committee of the Communist Youth League