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Herald Correspondent
The Parliamentary Commission for the investigation of the circumstances related to the establishment of Biological Laboratories by American specialists on the territory of Ukraine (hereinafter referred to as the commission) was formed in March 2022 and continued its work until March 2023.
The activities of the commission were carried out on the basis of the constitution of the Russian Federation and the Federal Law of December 27, 2005 No. 196-FZ
The facts and circumstances that came to knowledge of the Parliament of the Russian Federation related to biomedical programmes carried out by the United States on the territory of Ukraine have raised concerns that led to the parliamentary investigation.
The commission built its work on the basis of the materials at its disposal relating to the subject of the investigation; information received during the speeches of the heads of federal executive bodies and specialised scientific organisations; documents seized during the Special Military Operation; the results of surveys of specialists, experts with the necessary information, including those who directly worked on the territory of Ukraine.
In accordance with Federal Law No. 196-FZ of December 27, 2005
“On the Parliamentary Investigation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation”, the subject of the parliamentary investigation was not the establishment of the guilt of specific individuals.
Thus, the parliamentary investigation did not replace the inquiry, preliminary investigation and legal proceedings.
An important direction of the commission’s work was also to draw the attention of the world community to the revealed facts of violations of international law.
Main directions of the work of the Commission are:
Deliberate generalisation and fragmentation of information by the American side about the military biological activities in Ukraine;
Assessment of the creation of a wide network of “extraterritorial” biological laboratories located outside the national borders of the United States;
Assessment of the readiness of the Russian biological security system to repel threats;
Development of recommendations and proposals for strengthening the national biological security system and the BTWC regime.
The structure of the final report of the Parliamentary Commission is built in this logic.
It consists of 7 sections: introduction and 6 chapters with conclusions and suggestions.
Document systematised all available to the commission information about US biological programs in Ukraine. In particular, it contains a detailed analysis of the regulatory framework governing the interaction of the two countries in this sphere, the main directions of biological research conducted by the American party on Ukrainian territory, as well as their impact on the sanitary epidemiological situation in Ukraine.
Based on the analysis, a conclusion was carried out about the dual purpose of US biological programmes on the territory of Ukraine: they can be used for military purposes.
During the parliamentary inquiry it became evident that the US:
Have been carrying out biological programmes around the world, covering their contents with a secrecy regime;
Deliberately fragmented their biological research in order to disguise their true nature;
Purposefully oppose the legally binding Protocol to the BTWC, which provides for the creation of effective mechanisms for international control in this area;
Have created around the world and in Ukraine, in particular, a wide network of “extraterritorial” biological laboratories located outside the national borders of the United States;
Lead to the implementation of military biological programmes by commercial organisations – Pentagon contractors – in violation of the Resolution of the Security Council No.1540;
Pentagon and structures affiliated with it such DTRA are general customers of biological research.
Moreover, the United States:
By executing bioprogrammes in Ukraine, collecting biomaterial and even studying the reaction of local population to some pathogenic agents not only create the possibility for themselves to simulate the spread of local and global epidemics in this region but also to manage them;
The geography of US bioresearches is not accidental. They are being executed at the prospective areas of NATO contingents deployment. Thus, conditions for a possible aggression against Russia de-facto is being created;
The US national legislation allows development of bioweapons components. On joining the 1925 Geneva Protocol, the 37 states, including the US, made reservations that they reserve the right for a counter attack if an opposing force (and in some cases an ally) violates the protocol (retaliatory attack). At the same time, many countries are also members of the BWC that prohibits any possession of bioweapons in principal.
The reservation of the right for a counter attack implies the exact possession of such bioweapon that can be an indirect proof of its existence.
The commission came to the conclusion that:
The US sustain and develop the potential to create components of bioweapons and to produce and use it outside their national territory.
The US violate several provisions of the Biologic and Toxin Weapons Convention.
Facts of the US violations of the BWC international legal regime also indicate the shortcomings of the current norms and the urgent need for a comprehensive strengthening of the BWC regime.
Throughout the whole period of its work the parliamentary commission has engaged all available international fora to inform the international community of the facts of military and biological activities of the US in Ukraine and of the BWC norms violations.
The commission’s proposal to raise transparency of the national bioprogrammes and to comply with the BWC by all states parties without exception was presented at the BWC ninth review conference.
The commission has communicated twice its addresses to the parliaments of the countries of the world regarding the US military and biological activities outside its national territory.
The commission also points out that international terrorism poses a serious threat to the global biological security. It proposes to leverage international efforts for a timeless start of the multilateral negotiations at the Conference for Disarmament to develop international convention against acts of chemical and biological terrorism.
The outcome report of the commission adopted on April 12, 2023 is available on the Federation Council website.
Peter Tanyanyiwa
Online Reporter