Sunday, July 12, 2020

Russia is concerned about bubonic plague infections in China, Mongolia — ex-PM Medvedev

https://tass.com/society/1177021

The authorities of the Bayannur city district of the Inner Mongolia autonomous district in northern China announced on Sunday the regime of heightened epidemiological risk after a local hospital admitted a patient with symptoms normally observed in bubonic plague patients.





MOSCOW, July 10. /TASS/. 

Russia is concerned about the incidence of bubonic plague in humans in China and Mongolia, Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia Dmitry Medvedev said on Friday during a meeting on intensifying international interaction on fighting COVID-19 and other epidemic diseases.

"Not long ago, as it is known, there were instances of people contracting bubonic plague in Mongolia, in northern China. This is our border, and it, of course, causes certain concerns," he noted. "We must think how to react to this sort of threats," added Medvedev.

The authorities of the Bayannur city district of the Inner Mongolia autonomous district in northern China announced on Sunday the regime of heightened epidemiological risk due to the potential threat of local plague outbreaks. This decision was made after a local hospital admitted a patient with symptoms normally observed in bubonic plague patients. Two confirmed cases of plague and one suspected infection in Mongolia had also been reported.



US biological laboratories in third countries raise suspicions — ex-PM Medvedev

https://tass.com/politics/1177017

Earlier, Moscow repeatedly voiced its concerns over US biological labs in Georgia and Ukraine.

MOSCOW, July 10. /TASS/
Operation of US laboratories in third countries raises suspicions, while this should not be the case, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev noted Friday. Speaking during a meeting on international cooperation on countering the COVID-19 infection and other epidemics, Medvedev noted that Russia advocates international cooperation during laboratory research.
"Unfortunately, not everyone adheres to the same position. This is not the case for a number of our colleagues, and I mean the position the United States takes when it works in laboratories deployed in certain countries that border us or are even members of the Eurasian Economic Union," the deputy chairman underscored.

"In any case, such an activity may even be beneficial, but it must raise no suspicions," Medvedev said. "Unfortunately, such suspicions arise in the modern world."


Earlier, Moscow repeatedly voiced its concerns over US biological laboratories in Georgia and Ukraine. Russian Permanent Representative to the OSCE Alexander Lukashevich noted the lack of transparency in these enterprises, including those, which Ukrainian and Georgian authorities have only limited control over. The diplomat recalled leaks in the media, suggesting that these laboratories, under the guise of fight with infectious diseases, conduct classified experiments with highly dangerous pathogens, including plague and hemorrhagic fevers causative agents.