Russian state media have published statements by a Russian defence ministry official who suggests that the United States could be responsible for the virus that causes Monkeypox.
Both Sputnik and TASS reported on the comments, that seek to link the emergence of Monkeypox to US laboratories in Nigeria.
The United States has supported efforts to combat communicable diseases in Nigera but there is no evidence that it has funded the militarization of any laboratories.
During a June 2, 2022 WHO briefing, Africa director Matshidiso Moeti, said that WHO had not received any requests from the Russian government to investigate the presence of “US biolabs” in Nigeria. Moeti said that “we are not aware of WHO having received any request from the Russian government to investigate monkeypox and other laboratories in Nigeria.”
In response to the claims by the Russian government, the United States embassy in Nigeria posted the following statement:
“Recent misleading posts on social media wrongly speculate on the origin of the current global outbreak of monkeypox disease, and supposedly call for WHO to investigate so-called “U.S.-controlled laboratories” in Nigeria.
Such reports are pure fabrication. There is zero merit to any allegations regarding the use of U.S.-assisted Nigerian laboratories in the spread of monkeypox. Furthermore, there are no “U.S.-controlled” laboratories in Nigeria.
These falsehoods detract from the work that the United States, in close coordination with Nigerian and multilateral partners, accomplish together on public health, including in disease surveillance, diagnosis, prevention, and control.
The collaborative work between Nigeria and the United States has provided opportunities for technical assistance in capacity building, equipment, commodities/consumables, and funding to critical public health program, hospitals and laboratories. All of this contributes greatly to the prevention and amelioration of global disease outbreaks.”
The Russian government has promoted similar disinformation about US biolabs in the past, including the Cold War claim that HIV was created and released by the United States. The Russian government made similar false claims about the origins of COVID.
Claims like these are introduced by the Russian government to erode global trust in the United States and to sow confusion about serious health crises.
