Statement by the Deputy Head of the Delegation of the Russian Federation, Deputy Director of the Department for Non-Proliferation and Arms Control of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Konstantin Vorontsov at the Thematic Debate on Cluster II "Other WMDs" in the First Committee of the 80th Session of the UN General Assembly, New York, October 22, 2025
23 October 2025 18:50
1759-23-10-2025
Unofficial translation
Madam Chair,
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the entry into force of the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on their Destruction (BTWC). This most important international treaty as one of the pillars of the international security architecture outlawed an entire category of weapons of mass destruction. For half a century of its existence, the Convention has contributed significantly to the process of general and complete disarmament, reducing the risks of the use of biological agents and toxins for military purposes. The Russian Federation, as the Depositary State of the BTWC, has consistently implemented all its provisions in full.
However, even after half a century of the Convention's existence, we still cannot remove the problem of biological weapons from the international agenda. Some states continue to realize their military-biological program which go against the provisions of the BTWC.
The legitimate questions officially raised by the Russian Federation with regard to the revealed facts about a military-biological program being implemented in Ukraine in violation of the BTWC with support of the Pentagon and its affiliates, including private companies, remain unanswered. The analysis of projects carried out in Ukrainian laboratories leads to the conclusion that biological weapons components were being developed in close proximity to the Russian territory. We consider any such activity as a direct threat to our national security.
Information of the USA Administration concerning involvement of the USAID into financing of the development of the biological weapon affirmed the validity of Russian claims regarding the Washington's military-biological activity in close proximity to our territory. We expect that the USA as one of the Depositary State of the BTWC will provide an adequate response to our raised questions. It might assist the resolving of the unacceptable situation and ensure the USA compliance with the BTWC obligations.
The Ukrainian case strongly confirms the necessity of consolidated efforts of the international community to universalize and strengthen the BTWC regime. We consider that resumption of the work with a view to developing a universal, legally binding and non-discriminatory protocol that would cover all the BTWC articles and provide for an effective verification mechanism as well as strict implementation of the BTWC at national level are the main priorities.
Russia intends to continue its active efforts to strengthen the BTWC within the dedicated Working Group established by the decision of the Ninth Review Conference of the BTWC. We believe that only decisions taken by consensus can guarantee reliable implementation of the BTWC and prevent development and use of the biological weapons. At the same time it is important not to put artificial obstacles to development of civil biological technologies and international cooperation as envisaged in the BTWC. Russian initiatives aimed at genuinely strengthening the Convention regime include creating mobile biomedical units; establishing a Scientific Advisory Committee; enhancing confidence-building measures within the BTWC by providing States Parties to the Convention with information on biological-military activities outside national territory and animal vaccine-production facilities; and establishing a BTWC mechanism to investigate cases involving alleged violations of obligations under the Convention.
The strengthening of the expertise and technical capacity of the UN Secretary-General's Mechanism for Investigation of Alleged Use of Chemical and Biological Weapons (SGM) is urgently needed. Special attention should be paid to the Mechanism's basic principles and procedures, which have not been updated since their approval by UNGA resolution 45/57C of 4 December 1990. Having been developed in the last century, they do not fully meet the current realities of chemical and biological security and hardly can be considered as effective.
We would like to remind, that in 2023, Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, sent a message to United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calling for a review of the existing SGM principles and procedures with a view to updating them. Several states followed this example. The Joint Statement in Support of the Efforts to Strengthen the SGM initiated by Russia in 2023 and made on behalf of a group of countries in the First Committee contains a similar call. We hope that the UN Secretary-General will promptly proceed with the review with the help of expert consultants and taking into account the proposals from Member States. We are committed to most actively contribute to this work.
Madam Chair,
The Russian Federation attaches great importance to full and non-discriminatory implementation of the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction (CWC) and consistently supports its strengthening. Our country has faithfully and fully complied with the obligations assumed under this international treaty.
At the same time, we have to admit that the most important objective of the international community is to restore credibility and purely technical nature of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) which has already been turned by Western countries into a tool for political pressure and furthering their geopolitical interests.
This concerns, first of all, the fictionalized Syrian "chemical dossier" and the illegitimate "attribution" imposed on the OPCW in violation of the CWC to identify the perpetrators for the use of toxic chemicals and chemical warfare agents, with the falsification and distortion of facts. In recent years the practice to discredit undesirable states with groundless accusations of violation of the CWC was greatly used by Western Countries. At the same time they stubbornly ignore violations of the CWC by Ukraine although the Russian Federation has been regularly conveying information about such facts to the OPCW, the UN Security Council and General Assembly. The result of these destructive actions by this limited group of states is a split within the OPCW and its loss of independent status and authority as a universally recognised expert institution in the field of chemical disarmament and non-proliferation.
The Russian Federation has consistently opposed to such OPCW transformation and its exploitation by some states. We intend to continue making every effort, together with our partners and like-minded actors, to restore the spirit of consensus within the OPCW and the authority of this international organisation.
We intend to continue making every effort, together with our partners and other like-minded actors, to restore the rule of international law in the OPCW, the spirit of consensus and the authority of this international organization.
We strongly urge the States Parties to the CWC who care about the fate of this once successful disarmament mechanism to prevent final degradation of the OPCW.
Thank you.
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