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 Tuesday, October 29 2019 10:41
Alexandr Avanesov

Nikol Pashinyan: Yerevan and Moscow are working on a memorandum  guaranteeing the access of Russian specialists to bio- laboratories  operating in Armenia

Nikol Pashinyan: Yerevan and Moscow are working on a memorandum  guaranteeing the access of Russian specialists to bio- laboratories  operating in Armenia

ArmInfo. Yerevan and Moscow are working on a memorandum guaranteeing the access of Russian specialists to the biological laboratories operating in Armenia. This  was stated by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in an interview with  Kommersant special correspondent Vladimir Solovyov.

 According to him, these laboratories are used purely for medical purposes. The  Armenian prime minister noted that last year, on his personal behalf,  Russian specialists were allowed to visit these facilities to make  sure that they did not contain any threat to Russia. "They don't have  any military goal at all - these are biological laboratories that are  used purely for medical purposes. I think our Russian colleagues have  seen this," the head of the Armenian government said, adding that the  laboratories are the property of Armenia, and this is very important.  "By the way, these laboratories are valuable and important for  Armenia. We are also grateful to our American colleagues for  supporting Armenia, funding these modern laboratories, whose work is  aimed at ensuring the biological safety of Armenia. In fact, this is  a gift, and a very valuable gift." - said Nikol Pashinyan.

He also added that work on the text of the memorandum is still  ongoing. "The main goal of the document is to comply with the  interests of all parties so that no one, no one of our partners has  concerns about these laboratories," Nikol Pashinyan concluded.

Earlier it was reported that Russian specialists, including military  personnel, will be guaranteed access to the biological laboratory  operating in Armenia, created with Pentagon money. As Kommersant  learned, the corresponding memorandum is planned to be signed during  a visit to Yerevan by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Russia  has repeatedly criticized the United States for its "military  biomedical activity" at the Russian borders and promised to ensure  that the activities of laboratories operating in neighboring  countries become open to it. Sergey Lavrov has repeatedly raised the  "laboratory issue" at meetings with fellow ministers from CSTO member  countries. Kommersant wrote last summer about the fact that Moscow  and Yerevan began work on the corresponding document. Now it is  finished. In the Russian Federation, they hope that the issue will be  similarly resolved with Kazakhstan (the Central Reference Laboratory,  for which the US allocated $ 130 million), operates in Almaty. The  Kazakh side organized a study tour to the biolaboratory in the  summer. But Moscow would like access guarantees. "It's important for  us to create a mechanism that allows us to periodically inspect these  laboratories and exchange information with partners in order to  provide a clear picture for ourselves. At the same time, exclude  control of these facilities from the United States and other third  countries," Kommersant's source in the Russian Foreign Ministry  explained.  Recall that in 2016, with the funding of the US  Department of Defense, three laboratories were opened in Armenia - in  Yerevan, Gyumri and Ijevan. After their discovery in the Armenian and  Russian media, publications periodically receive widespread publicity  that these laboratories are dual-use facilities and can be used for  military purposes to create and manufacture 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, $ 4.1 million was invested to fully build  the reference laboratory of the food safety department for especially  dangerous pathogens of the Ministry of Agriculture The US Government  invested $ 9.8 million to repair 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 structure. An  additional $ 1.7 million for both laboratories was allocated for the  purchase of new equipment and furniture.

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