Russia Blasted by West at UN for Spreading Bioweapons ‘Nonsense’ over Ukraine

Representative of Russia to the United Nations Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City, New York, US, March 18, 2022. (Reuters)
Representative of Russia to the United Nations Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City, New York, US, March 18, 2022. (Reuters)
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Russia Blasted by West at UN for Spreading Bioweapons ‘Nonsense’ over Ukraine

Representative of Russia to the United Nations Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City, New York, US, March 18, 2022. (Reuters)
Representative of Russia to the United Nations Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City, New York, US, March 18, 2022. (Reuters)

The United States and Western allies slammed Russia on Friday for spreading propaganda, disinformation and "nonsense" at the United Nations Security Council by alleging that parts of biological weapons were being made in Ukraine.

Russia's UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia sent a lengthy document, seen by Reuters, to the council and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday on Moscow's accusation that there are "military biological programs" in Ukraine.

"The Ministry of Defense is receiving more and more material and analyzing that. We will continue to keep the international community informed about the unlawful activity carried out by the Pentagon on Ukrainian territory," Nebenzia told the council.

It was the second time in two weeks that the 15-member council met on the topic at Russia's request. Britain's UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward described Russia's move as "disinformation of the desperate."

"We've had a rehash of amateurish disinformation, which we discussed and debunked last Friday. It was nonsense then, and it is nonsense now," she told the council on Friday.

The United Nations has said it was not aware of any biological weapons programs in Ukraine, and UN disarmament affairs chief Izumi Nakamitsu told the council on Friday that the world body does not have "the mandate nor the technical or operational capacity" to investigate Russia's information.

The US ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, on Friday accused her Russian counterpart of "a tirade of bizarre conspiracy theories" last week.

"This week we're hearing a whole lot more where that came from, things that sound like they were forwarded to him on a chain email from some dark corner of the internet. President Biden has a word for this kind of talk: 'Malarkey,'" she said.

Thomas-Greenfield also said "it is possible that Russia may be planning to use chemical or biological agents against the Ukrainian people," but did not cite any evidence for Washington's concerns.

Russia called the meeting on Friday to replace a planned vote on a Russian-drafted call for aid access and protection of civilians in Ukraine. Diplomats said the measure would have failed, while Nebenzia accused Western countries of a campaign of "unprecedented pressure" against it.



UK to Use Police Stations as Prisons under Emergency Measure

Police officers are seen in London, Britain, November 27, 2024. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
Police officers are seen in London, Britain, November 27, 2024. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
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UK to Use Police Stations as Prisons under Emergency Measure

Police officers are seen in London, Britain, November 27, 2024. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
Police officers are seen in London, Britain, November 27, 2024. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy

Police cells will temporarily be used to hold prisoners in a stop-gap measure to cope with overcrowding in jails, the British government said on Tuesday.

The emergency action, dubbed "Operation Safeguard", allows inmates to be held in police cells when prisons are full, and was previously used from February 2023 to October last year, Reuters said.

The prison population in England and Wales has doubled in the last 30 years, according to official data, leading to overcrowding as new places have failed to keep pace with demand. Justice systems in Scotland and Northern Ireland are run separately.

In a statement to parliament, Shabana Mahmood said the prison system was operating at more than 99% occupancy.

January saw the highest average monthly prison population growth in almost two years, as part of a rising trend in the last three months that "has only just begun to slow", she added.

"Given the recent increase in demand, it is necessary, and prudent, for me to temporarily reactivate Operation Safeguard to better manage the flow of offenders into the prison estate," Mahmood said.

According to the World Prison Brief database, imprisonment rates in England and Wales are higher than in other major European countries, with 141 detainees per 100,000 population, against 120 in France, 117 in Spain, 105 in Italy and 68 in Germany.