Merefa won a victory over the Pentagon!

Efforts of initiative group of Shelkostantsiya residential district of Merefa city were crowned with success. At once the confirmations came from several levels of the government that the construction of biological laboratory of the Ministry of Defence of the USA won’t be made in this place.

The Internet portal «The world and we», «Military review» and other mass media already devoted some publications to problems of distribution of the biological weapon, two of them concerned the construction plans of the American biological laboratory of the 3rd level of biological protection under Merefa. It was planned to place there within the agreement about «Reduction of biological threat in Ukraine», signed in 2005 between Ministry of Healthcare of Ukraine and the Ministry of Defence of the USA. This project was opposed unanimously by all inhabitants of the residential district of Shelkostantsiya, Merefa, Kharkov and area.

The initiative group was created for counteraction to implementation of the project the participants of which began vigorous activity— sent inquiries to various authorities, arranged pickets, printed the leaflets.

Danger of construction of this object was obvious to all inhabitants — the biological laboratory had to settle down in only 50 meters from houses. That the Ministry of Defence of the USA will be engaged in construction of this object caused fair suspicions that locals can appear experimental «rabbits» in experiments which will be made by the American military. Therefore in the activity they resolved to go to the bitter end — to achieve a ban of construction of the American military facility in close proximity to the houses.

This fight reached the peak in November. Answers to the address of local activists in the Main Sanitary and Epidemiologic Service of Ukraine, Ministry of Healthcare of Ukraine and other instances were received. In the answer the first deputy head of the Main Sanitary and Epidemiologic Service O. P. Kravchuk noted:

«Period of validity of the „Reduction of Biological Threat in Ukraine“ project which was executed within the Agreement between the Ministry of Healthcare of Ukraine and the Ministry of Defence of the USA, signed in 2005 ended on May 31, 2013. According to conclusions of the interdepartmental commission created for execution of an order of the prime minister of Ukraine N. Ya. Azarov the decision on revision of conditions of the Agreement by changes in its provisions is made.
Negotiation process with foreign partners is begun, the consultations with the American side on modification of the Agreement are held on the basis of the Public Sanitary and Epidemiologic Service of Ukraine. Further activities for the project, including in the sphere of construction of laboratories, are possible after modification of the Agreement and project prolongation. Thus, any actions within the agreement, including construction, Public Sanitary and Epidemiologic Service of Ukraine doesn’t carry out for today».

Even more detailed answer came from the Ministry of Healthcare of Ukraine from the minister Raisa Bogatyreva in which, in particular, it is specified:

«Construction of the Central reference-laboratory for consolidation of especially dangerous pathogens of an animal origin was planned on object which is in the sphere of management of National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine. The Agency on reduction of military threat of the Ministry of Defence of the USA acted as the initiator of construction of laboratory and consolidation of pathogens in it …

Ministry of Healthcare of Ukraine, State Veterinary Phytosanitary Service of Ukraine and National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine were beneficiaries of this project. The foreign party didn’t fulfil obligations within implementation of the specified project. Period of validity of the Project came to the end on May 31, 2013, and since June 1, 2013 all works on the project in the territory of Ukraine are suspended. For today the projects within implementation of the Agreement aren’t registered in the Ministry of Economic Development of Ukraine …

For the purpose of ensuring biological safety of the Ministry of Healthcare of Ukraine … the State target program of biological safety and biological protection for 2015 — 2020 is developed and approved by the resolution of the Cabinet of Ukraine of April 1, 2013 No. 630. Execution of this Program will give the chance to provide functioning of complex national system of biological safety and biological protection and as to avoid dependence on the foreign states and their defensive projects».

Nevertheless, the director of Institute of experimental and clinical veterinary medicine Boris Stegniya made the statements that the biological laboratory, despite of everything, will be constructed.

Besides, according to the answer from the Public Sanitary and Epidemiologic Service of Ukraine, the question of its construction in the future in connection with possibility of prolongation of the Agreement still remained open.

All this compelled the inhabitants of Shelkostantsiya to leave on meeting for a final ban of construction of dangerous object. During the meeting the activists blocked the route «Simferopol — Moscow» for short time to draw attention of the authorities to the problem.

Besides, the activists visited the mayor of Merefa Veniamin Sitov, transferred him the lists with signatures of thousands of the people opposing the construction of laboratory and as provided exhaustive information on all dangers with the construction of which this object threatens. After that the mayor made the appeals to the relevant instances followed explanations about alleged construction.

The inflaming conflict round construction drew considerable media exposure — in many editions there were articles about estimated American object in Merefa.

The initiative group sent the letter to the ambassador of the United States in Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt in which it is spoken, in particular: «This planned bacteriological laboratory of the USA located for thousands kilometres from your state, will be „Trojan Horse“ for the population of Ukraine. We don’t want that the destiny of Iraq and Syria repeated on our earth. We won’t allow building of virus and bacteriological base of the Pentagon of especially dangerous pathogens».

All this complex of actions finally led to that the regional management paid attention to the events. Conclusions and information which was provided by activists and the relevant services led to making decision on a final ban of construction of the American biological laboratory in Merefa.

The governor of the Kharkov area Mikhail Dobkin declared about it: «We analyzed all aspects about which the scientists spoke to us. So in details to understand a question we were induced by protest mood of locals. I wanted to understand: this situation is wound by politicians or something kept back from me. Having analysed the letters of the Ministry of an agrarian policy in details, having studied a position of health officers, I will tell so: we won’t build bacteriological laboratory in Merefa».

After that also the director of Institute of experimental and clinical veterinary medicine who was one of the main lobbyists of the project, was compelled to confirm that won’t build biological laboratory in Shelkostantsiya.

The activists of Shelkostantsiya celebrated the victory on December 1 by the meeting on a main square of Merefa. Thanks to activity and initiative of inhabitants they managed to defend native places, and, probably, to prevent the disasters the scales of which it is difficult to present.

Nevertheless, the activists don’t lose vigilance. According to unchecked information though biological laboratory construction in Shelkostantsiya failed, the interested structures didn’t refuse the plan of placement of this object in the Kharkov area. There are data that, probably, it will place in Timchenki remote village of the Zmiyevsky area where, allegedly, the soil tests for determination of purity of the territory were already carried out. Therefore activists don’t hurry «to lay down arms» and watch closely a situation. The Pentagon won’t pass in Kharkov.