Screengrab of Russian Defence Ministry briefing showing US-sponsored biolabs on Ukraininan territory. Photo : Russian Ministry of Defence

 
China firmly opposes research, development, stockpiling or the use of biological weapons by any country under any circumstance, Ambassador Geng Shuang, Deputy Permanent Representative of the People's Republic of China to the United Nations, reiterated at a briefing of the United Nations Security Council on Thursday over the biosecurity issue in Ukraine.

At the briefing, UN's High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Adedeji Ebo told the Council that Russia had filed a formal complaint over allegations of a biological weapons program in Ukraine under Article VI of the Biological Weapons Convention. And UN's High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, Izumu Nakamitsu, had previously informed ambassadors that the UN had seen no evidence of biological weapons use in Ukraine. 

"This remains the case today," Ebo said. "I would also like to note that the United Nations currently has neither the mandate nor the technical or operational capacity to investigate this information."

Both Russia and Ukraine are parties to the 1972 Biological Weapons Convention (BWC), which prohibits the development, production, acquisition, transfer, stockpiling and use of biological and toxin weapons. 

Reiterating that China firmly opposes research, development, stockpiling or the use of biological weapons by any country under any circumstances, Geng called on States parties to strictly observe the objectives and principles of the BWC.

Information on biological military activities provided by Russia deserves a corresponding response by relevant parties, Geng said, calling on the relevant parties to take a responsible attitude in effectively fulfilling their obligations under the BWC. 

Expressing regret that the formal consultative meeting in September had failed to answer the questions raised by Moscow, Geng suggested that the international community may wish to consider invoking article VI of the BWC to facilitate the establishment of the verification mechanism as a means to ensure its authority and effectiveness.

Geng also expressed hope that the BWC's upcoming ninth Review Conference in November will be an opportunity to further strengthen the confidence-building mechanism, return to the negotiations on the protocol to the BWC that had collapsed two decades ago, and establish a multilateral review mechanism in order to increase global biosecurity.

As to the Ukraine crisis, Geng stressed that China is looking forward to an earnest ceasefire. China is also willing to play a role in the issue together with the international society. 

Global Times