The post by the WMC and Todor Petrov that the United States owns bio-labs in Ukraine, which has become very viral and popular on social media, especially on those channels where disinformation and speculation about the Russian invasion of Ukraine are shared on a daily basis, is a classic spin attempt to defend Russian terror in Ukraine. This conspiracy theory has been spread by Russian propagandists since 2018. Such statements deliberately misinterpret the 2005 US-Ukraine Agreement, which aims to prevent biological threats rather than create them. Contrary to claims, under the agreement, the Ukrainian and US governments agreed to work together to “prevent the spread of dangerous pathogens and minimize potential biological threats”, writes Truthmeter.mk.
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The President of the World Macedonian Congress, Todor Petrov, posted a statement from the WMC on Facebook, in which a spin based on incorrect information was recognized.
Spin: The World Macedonian Congress (WMC) strongly condemns the American military-biological program in Ukraine and in the world!
The WMC requires Russia to provide information on US-funded biological laboratories dealing with dangerous pathogens in Ukraine and expects the start of a consultation mechanism for verification under the 1972 International Convention on the Prohibition of Biological and Toxin Weapons.
Of concern is the fact that Ukraine has sent a serum to patients in the United States belonging to ethnic Russians, a project carried out by the US military.
The US Department of Defense controls 336 biological laboratories in 30 countries around the world under the guise of “cooperating to reduce biosecurity risks” and “enhancing global public health”.
[Source: Announcement of WMC – Facebook profile of Todor Petrov; date: 10.03.2022]
Counterspin: The claim of the World Macedonian Congress and Todor Petrov that the United States owns bio-labs in Ukraine is one of the most widespread disinformation that has been spread in recent years, and is now rapidly re-actualized after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This conspiracy theory has been spread by Russian propagandists since 2018.
Such statements deliberately misinterpret the 2005 US-Ukraine Agreement, which aims to prevent biological threats rather than create them. According to the Security Service of Ukraine, the laboratories are owned and funded by the Ukrainian government.
Under the August 2005 Agreement, the Ukrainian and US governments agreed to work together to “prevent the spread of dangerous pathogens and related expertise and minimize potential biological threats.”
Due to the huge flow of disinformation related to this topic, the White House issued a statement a few days ago stating that the Kremlin is deliberately spreading open lies that the United States and Ukraine are carrying out activities with chemical and biological weapons in Ukraine. This announcement was republished by the US Embassy in North Macedonia.
We have also seen PRC officials echo these conspiracy theories. This Russian disinformation is total nonsense and not the first time Russia has invented such false claims against another country. As we have said all along, Russia is inventing false pretexts in an attempt to justify its own horrific actions in Ukraine. The United States does not own or operate any chemical or biological laboratories in Ukraine, it is in full compliance with its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention and Biological Weapons Convention, and it does not develop or possess such weapons anywhere. It is Russia that has active chemical and biological weapons programs and is in violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention and Biological Weapons Convention, – the statement reads.
CONSPIRACY THEORY OF RUSSIAN PROPAGANDISTS
The conspiracy that the United States runs secret bio-laboratories in Ukraine has been spread by Russian propagandists for four years – since 2018.
In May 2020, the Security Service of Ukraine issued a statement calling on politicians to stop spreading false information about the existence of foreign military biological laboratories in Ukraine.
Recently, “fake news” about the alleged activities of US military biological laboratories in Ukraine has spread in the media and social networks. No foreign biological laboratory operates in Ukraine. The recent statements of individual politicians are incorrect and are a deliberate distortion of the facts, the statement said.
The US Embassy in Ukraine issued a statement in April 2020 calling the theories “misinformation spreading in some circles in Ukraine reflecting Russian misinformation about a strong US-Ukrainian partnership to reduce biological threats.”
Biological weapons researcher and professor at King’s College London, Philippa Lenzos, told AFP that there were no indications that these laboratories in Ukraine were being used to develop biological weapons, but that their aim was to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.
On March 6, Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed to have received evidence that Ukraine and the United States had cooperated in developing biological weapons. In many Russian media, this information resonated with the speed of light and was published by media in our country as well.
Given all of the above, the statement from the WMC and Todor Petrov, which has become very viral and popular on social networks, especially on those channels where disinformation and speculation related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine are shared on a daily basis, is considered a classic attempted spin to defend Russian terror in Ukraine.
