DISINFO: The US collects biosamples of Slavs to create pathogens
SUMMARY
The United States continues to implement military biological programmes to create artificial pathogens and microorganisms resistant to antibiotics, vaccines and traditional therapies. The United States has set up a network of laboratories around Russia, in which experiments with the biomaterial of Slavs are being conducted.
RESPONSE
This an unsubstantiated conspiracy theory and a recurring disinformation narrative from pro-Kremlin outlets accusing the US of developing biological weapons in secret laboratories in Ukraine and other post-Soviet republics.
There are dozens of civilian public health laboratories in Ukraine, but there is nothing sinister about their work. Some of these laboratories receive funding from the United States, the European Union and the World Health Organization (WHO). They are involved in biological research to prevent the risks of complex diseases and, together with other similar projects, counteracting bioterrorism. The allegation about collecting biological samples of Slavic peoples ignores the fact that a biological weapon targeting specific ethnic genomes remains in the realm of hypothesis for a number of reasons, such as the challenge of obtaining genetic markers exclusive to a particular ethnic group.
Read many similar disinformation cases claiming that the Ukrainian secret services are preparing a provocation with bioweapons to blame Russia, that Ukrainians infect Europe with antibiotic-resistant diseases possibly linked to US biolabs, and that the US carried out disgusting biological experiments on Ukrainians.