Kyiv destroyed deadly samples from US-funded biowarfare labs: Russia

MOSCOW - The Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed on Tuesday that authorities in Kyiv destroyed dangerous pathogens of deadly diseases stored in US-funded laboratories in the country.

The ministry received documentation from employees at Ukrainian biological laboratories confirming the urgent destruction of dangerous pathogens such as plague, anthrax, tularemia, cholera and other deadly diseases on Feb 24, according to a statement made by Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova.

She added that these laboratories were funded by the US Department of Defense and were part of a biological weapons program.

According to the foreign ministry, the pathogens were immediately destroyed to hide evidence pointing to the United States and Ukraine violating Article I of the United Nations Biological Weapons Convention.

Also on Tuesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry called on the United States to release details of its biological laboratories in Ukraine and urged relevant parties to ensure their safety.

"In particular, the United States, as the party that knows the laboratories best, should release relevant specific information as soon as possible, including what viruses are stored and the research that has been carried out," Spokesperson Zhao Lijian said at a daily press briefing.

US bio-military activities in Ukraine are only "the tip of the iceberg", Zhao said. Under various names, the US Department of Defense controls 336 biological laboratories in 30 countries.