Department of State explained what American laboratories in Armenia,  Georgia, Ukraine and Azerbaijan are engaged in

ArmInfo. The US Department of State explained what they are doing in American laboratories in the territories of Armenia, Georgia, Ukraine and Azerbaijan.

Thus, George Kent, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European  and Eurasian Affairs at a video conference held jointly with the  Marshall Fund, touched upon the activities of American  bio-laboratories in foreign countries, and assured that the fight  against misinformation and negative influence has become a common  problem.

"One of the most important US investments in the Eastern Partnership  countries 15 years ago was the diagnostic laboratories known as the  Lugar Laboratories, which are now attacked by the Russian propaganda.  This laboratory infrastructure is testing and combating COVID in  Georgia, Armenia, Ukraine and Azerbaijan. This infrastructure was  created more than ten years ago at the expense of the US funds.   Laboratory personnel were also trained by the Americans so that  countries could act in the current situation, although we are looking  for ways to international cooperation, Russia continues to misinform  against the laboratories of Lugar, claiming that we have created this  disease and do not fight it. The sad thing is that the Chinese have  caught this misinformation of Russia, "Kent said.

It should be noted that the reason for Washington's reaction was a  statement made earlier by the official representative of the Russian  Foreign Ministry. In particular, she said that Moscow is aware of the  US proposals to Georgia to expand research for military purposes in  the Lugar bio-laboratory near Tbilisi, an infrastructure with  dangerous biological potential is being formed near the borders of  the Russian Federation.

It should also be noted that Moscow and Yerevan announced the start  of work on a document on the access of Russian specialists to  American biological laboratories in the RA back in 2018. Moreover, on  November 11, 2019, in Yerevan, the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and  Russia at a joint press conference announced the completion of work  in this direction, and pending approval of the document at the  interagency level in the two countries. However, after that, all talk  on this issue subsided.

To recall in 2016, with the funding of the US Department of Defense,  three laboratories were opened in Armenia - in Yerevan, Gyumri and  Ijevan. After their opening, publications periodically receive  widespread publicity in the Armenian and Russian media that these  laboratories are dual-use facilities and can be used for military  purposes to create and produce biological weapons. The US Department  of Defense allocated $ 15.5 million for the creation of a reference  laboratory in Yerevan, and the total funding amounted to $ 18  million.

In Yerevan, for the full construction of the reference laboratory of  the food safety department for especially dangerous pathogens of the  Ministry of Agriculture, $ 4.1 million was invested, and the US  government invested $ 9.8 million for the repair of the reference  laboratory of the "National Center for Disease Control and  Prevention" of the Ministry of Health of Armenia, ensuring the  seismic stability of the building and creating the necessary  laboratory infrastructure. An additional $ 1.7 million for both  laboratories was allocated for the purchase of new equipment and  furniture.