ArmInfo. There is a dialogue between Armenia and Russia on the issue related to bio laboratories, as well as with other countries. The Russian Ambassador to Armenia Sergey Kopirkin stated this on December 18 at a press conference. He noted that the dialogue is very constructive and there is mutual understanding between the parties.
"I do not rule out that we will reach some agreements. However, I cannot say exactly when these agreements will be reached, and in what format," the ambassador stressed.
Kopirkin also noted that there could be no prohibitions, since we are talking about relations between two sovereign states. "I want to emphasize that there is no final agreement on the exclusion of the presence of foreign military on the territory of biolaboratories in Armenia," the head of the Russian embassy said. As for military personnel, there is an approach within the CSTO, according to which countries should coordinate the issue with their partners within the framework of this organization. To note, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said recently: With Armenia, we are completing the process of preparing a document that will guarantee the non-presence of foreign military there, which will ensure that everything that is done there will be transparent in terms of guarantees that there are no threats and risks,"the minister said, adding that a similar agreement is also being prepared with Kazakhstan.
Earlier, Kommersant wrote that the Russian side is negotiating with Armenia about signing a document that would guarantee a ban on the use of biolaboratories by third countries with financial support from the United States. It was noted that if the negotiations are crowned with success, then American experts will not have access to the laboratory. During his visit to Moscow, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said in an interview with the Kommersant newspaper that, on his personal instructions, Russian specialists were admitted to laboratories located in Armenia that deal with biomaterial research. He stressed that the representatives of the Russian Federation never had and will not have problems with access there. To recall, in 2016, with the funding of the US Department of Defense, three laboratories were opened in Armenia - in Yerevan, in Gyumri and in Ijevan. After their discovery in the Armenian and Russian mass media, publications are periodically received that these laboratories are dual-purpose objects and can also be used for military purposes for the creation and production of biological weapons. The establishment of the reference laboratory in Yerevan by the US Department of Defense allocated $ 15.5, and the total funding amounted to $ 18 million. In Yerevan, $ 4.1 million was invested for the full construction of the reference laboratory of the food safety department for highly dangerous pathogens of the RA Ministry of Agriculture repairing the reference laboratory of the National Center for Disease Control and Prevention of the Ministry of Health of Armenia by the US government invested $ 9.8 million, ensuring the seismic stability of the building and creating the necessary laboratory infrastructure Keturah. An additional $ 1.7 million for both laboratories was allocated for the purchase of new equipment and furniture.