The UN Security Council turned Friday into a field of accusations of disinformation and manipulation between the West and Russia, on the occasion of a meeting requested by Moscow on an alleged presence in Ukraine of bioweapons coordinated with the United States, which has completely denied.
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Ukraine has “a network of 30 laboratories” where “very dangerous biological experiments” are carried out, said the Russian ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia.
The UN “is not aware of any biological weapons program in Ukraine”, previously declared a UN disarmament official, Izumi Nakamitsu, while the ambassadors of Ukraine and the United States rejected the Russian allegations.
Moscow is using the Security Council to utter “a series of wild, completely baseless and irresponsible conspiracy theories”, launched the British ambassador Barbara Woodward.
His American counterpart, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said his country’s aid to Ukraine in biology was aimed at detecting diseases such as COVID-19.
“It’s a job that was done proudly, clearly and in broad daylight”, and “which has nothing to do with biological weapons”, she explained, accusing Moscow of having convened this meeting “for the sole purpose of lying and spreading misinformation.”
The Russian accusations had been made on Thursday by the Ministry of Defense and the head of diplomacy Sergei Lavrov.
Russia and Ukraine have also again accused each other of lying about the maternity hospital in Mariupol (southeast), destroyed this week by a Russian bombardment. Vassily Nebenzia, brandishing photos, affirmed that a pregnant woman shown in front of the building was not one, her Ukrainian counterpart, Sergiy Kyslytsya assuring the contrary by announcing to the Council “the good news” that she had given birth.
Questioned by AFP at the end of the meeting, several ambassadors expressed their dismay at the turn taken by the meeting, some judging that it had not been at the level of the enclosure supposed to protect peace and security. in the world. “If I had known (…), I would not have come”, commented an ambassador on condition of anonymity.