On November 14, a Georgian language Facebook user published a post in the Facebook group “Antilab-Georgia,” according to which the Slovak publication Hlavný dennik talked about the dangers associated with biolaboratories operated by the US in various countries.
The Slovak outlet Hlavny Dennik published the article “Biological weapons in American laboratories threaten the existence of the world” on November 7. The main source of the Slovak publication itself is the American far-right, conspiracy, and fake news outlet Natural News. Notably, one of the main sources of Natural News is an article published on September 25 on GlobalResearch titled “US Bioweapons in Nigeria Threaten Africa and the Whole World.” The articles link “hazardous” biological research programs with the US Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA). In general, the publications, based on each other and the Russian Ministry of Defense, voice several recurring claims:
- US Biolabs in Nigeria have been conducting secret research on dangerous pathogens for years. Outbreaks of strange diseases often occur near these bio laboratories;
- WHO ignored Russian requests to inspect biolaboratories in Nigeria;
- Journalist Dilyana Gaytandzhieva exposed the activities of dangerous biolaboratories in Georgia;
- The US presidential candidate, Robert Kennedy Jr., confirmed the production of biological weapons by the Americans in Ukraine and other post-Soviet countries.
The article by Hlavný dennik was covered by the Kremlin’s propaganda media – ИНОСМИ, Голос Отечества and the English-language edition of NewsFront. Identical information was spread by Kazakh media Kazakhstan Today. The information was also spread by Russian-speaking Facebook users (1,2,3,4).
The claims voiced by the above-mentioned media outlets amplify disinformation and conspiracy theories: 1. The laboratories in Nigeria are engaged in normal scientific activities and are not linked to the production of biological weapons or the spread of dangerous viruses. 2. WHO has not received a request from Russia to inspect laboratories in Nigeria. 3. Dilyana Gaytandzhieva is a Bulgarian journalist linked to the Kremlin, who has been spreading disinformation about biolaboratories for years. 4. Robert Kennedy Jr. systematically spreads disinformation and conspiracy theories.
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The laboratories in Nigeria are engaged in normal scientific activities
All three articles talk about dangerous “biolaboratories” operating in Nigeria. The source of the claims related to Nigeria is the briefing of the head of the radiation, chemical, and biological defense forces of the Russian Federation, Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, in which he linked the spread of monkeypox to 4 “American” biological laboratories in Nigeria.
On May 31, 2022, the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control and Prevention responded to Kirilov’s allegations and refuted his claims. According to the agency, Kirilov’s accusations are not backed by any evidence and the laboratories in Nigeria are well known to the relevant monitoring bodies. Most of them were developed with the involvement of the Federal Government of Nigeria in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and for diagnostic purposes of other infectious diseases. According to the Center, some of the laboratories are part of a successful HIV control program and are related to the prevention, diagnosis, monitoring, and control of diseases.
“As a rule, Nigeria welcomes scientific cooperation with all foreign countries, and has received material support from the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan etc, and also discussed vaccine production with Russia. Collaboration between Nigeria and the United States has provided opportunities for technical assistance, capacity building, provision of equipment and field hospitals at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, and funds to support health programmes, like HIV/AIDS, malaria elimination” – we read in the statement issued by the center.
The center also denied the claim that the outbreak of monkeypox was in any way linked to research activities at the labs. It should be noted that monkeypox was discovered in 1956, and the first case of human infection was confirmed in 1970. Claims that the virus is artificially engineered or that this time it spread from a laboratory are baseless.
During the May 27 briefing, Kirilov singled out four laboratories in Nigeria and presented photos of three laboratories among the so-called evidence. The Nigerian fact-checking service FactCheckHub collected information about all three through photos. The photos show laboratory equipment at the Institute of Human Virology in Zaria; the Ministry of Defense Referral Laboratory and the Clinical Research Center in Abuja.
- Laboratory equipment at the Institute of Human Virology, Zaria; 2. Ministry of Defense Referral Laboratory, Zaria 3. Clinical Research Center, Zaria. Source: FactCheckHub
Each of these laboratories is involved in essential and important research for the prevention, control, and development of countermeasures for various infectious diseases, including HIV and tuberculosis, in Nigeria. Their activities are transparent and do not represent any kind of secret.
The US Embassy in Nigeria responded to the disinformation claims of the Russian Ministry of Defense regarding the spread of monkeypox and the so-called “American biolaboratories” in Nigeria.
Such reports are pure fabrication. There is zero merit to any allegations regarding the use of U.S.-assisted Nigerian laboratories in the spread of monkeypox. Furthermore, there are no “U.S.-controlled” laboratories in Nigeria.
These falsehoods detract from the work that the United States, in close coordination with Nigerian and multilateral partners, accomplish together on public health, including in disease surveillance, diagnosis, prevention, and control.” – notes that statement.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Ministry of Defense of Russia systematically conducts briefings at which Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, the head of the radiation, chemical, and biological defense forces of the Russian Armed Forces, spreads disinformation. Russia’s false claims have been repeatedly debunked by “Myth Detector.” Briefings are mainly related to Ukraine and “dangerous” biological or medical experiments and the alleged development of biological weapons. The US Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) is particularly often in the spotlight. Since 1998, DTRA’s mission has been to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the emergence of new threats. DTRA actively collaborates with partners to neutralize potential threats, one example of which is the Biothreat Reduction Program (BTRP). The program was created after the collapse of the USSR to help Russia and other former Soviet republics safely neutralize Soviet-era weapons of mass destruction and strengthen biosecurity in these countries. It should be noted that the Russian Federation itself has participated in the BTRP program for years.
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WHO has not received a request from Russia to inspect laboratories in Nigeria
On June 2, the organization responded to the widespread claim that the WHO ignores requests from Russia to inspect laboratories in Nigeria. Dr Matshidiso Moeti, Regional Director of WHO in Africa, stated at a press conference that they have not received an official request from the Russian side of WHO to inspect laboratories in Nigeria.
African fact-checking platforms AfricaCheck and Factcheckhub verified disinformation about Biolabs in Nigeria as early as 2022.
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Dilyana Gaytandzhieva is a Bulgarian journalist linked to the Kremlin, who has been spreading disinformation about biolaboratories for years
Dilyana Gaytandzhieva is a Bulgarian journalist who is linked to the Kremlin and its propaganda publications. She has been spreading disinformation about the Lugar Center for years. For example, in 2020, Gaytandzhieva manipulatively connected the collection of samples with the creation of biological weapons within the framework of the hepatitis C elimination program. Gaytandzhieva continued spreading disinformation about bio laboratories even after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In March 2022, Gaitanjieva was spreading disinformation on her blog dilyana.bg about military personnel studies in Georgia and Ukraine. For more information about Dilyana Gaytandzhieva and her activities, see the profile prepared by “Myth Detector.”
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Robert Kennedy Jr. systematically spreads disinformation and conspiracy theories
Robert Kennedy Jr. is the nephew of US President John F. Kennedy. Currently, he is an independent candidate in the US presidential elections. Kennedy is the founder of the anti-vaccine organization Children’s Health Defense and has been spreading disinformation about vaccines for years.
Kennedy spoke about the laboratories with the owner of X (Twitter) during a discussion on X on Twitter Space. Kennedy said that Victoria Nuland admitted before Congress that Ukraine has biological weapons, which is disinformation. In fact, Nuland said, Ukraine has biological research centers. Nuland noted that Russian forces may be trying to gain control over them.
Kennedy’s false claims have been repeatedly verified by various fact-checking agencies. (Factcheck.org, Fogically Facts) In addition to spreading disinformation about vaccines, Kennedy has claimed that Wi-Fi causes brain cancer, chemicals in water cause gender dysphoria in children, and antidepressants are linked to mass shootings. After the start of the war in Ukraine, he repeated the narratives of the Kremlin, exaggerated the number of Ukrainian soldiers killed in the war, accused the US of dragging Ukraine into the war, said that Putin is ready for negotiations, and Zelenskyy is sabotaging the peace process.
. About the Sources:
Notably, while spreading yet another disinformation about bio laboratories, the Kremlin media cites the Slovak publication Hlavny Dennik for more credibility, although ultimately the source of this information is still Russia and the Ministry of Defense of Russia. The Russian media rely on the Slovak edition, the Slovak edition relies on the American one, and the American Natural News on the Canadian Global Research, the source of which is Igor Kirillov.
In addition, Natural News is a far-right and fake news resource that spreads extremist materials, disinformation, conspiracy theories, and pseudoscientific claims. The false information spread by Natural News has been verified many times by various fact-checking services.
As for GlobalResearch, it is a resource of the Center for Globalization Research. The center presents itself as an “independent research and media organization”. Its founder is Canadian economist Michel Chosudovsky. Chusodovsky was a frequent guest of the Russian propaganda channel RT. Chusodovsky himself denies spreading Kremlin narratives, although GlobalResearch has been repeatedly found to be spreading disinformation.
In 2017, it became known that GlobalResearch became the object of an investigation by NATO’s information warfare specialists for voicing Russian disinformation narratives. In 2020, GlobalResearch was included in the special report of the US State Department “Pillars of the Russian Disinformation and Propaganda Ecosystem“. According to the report, GlobalResearch is deeply embedded in the Russian disinformation and propaganda ecosystem. The authors and conspiracy theorists who publish articles on the site have become a good source for Russian and Chinese websites. “The site’s publications also create a Western voice that other elements of the ecosystem use to their advantage,” the report reads.
In addition, a study by Stanford University revealed the connection of the authors of GlobalResearch with the Russian intelligence service GRU. In particular, the authors of GlobalResearch include 7 false identities created by the GRU. According to the 2020 report, 108 articles were published on the site under the name of authors with false identities.
Archive links: Hlavny Dennik , Natural News, GlobalResearch, ნიუს ფრონტი,
Kazakhstan Today, ИНОСМИ, Голос Отечества
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