BAKU, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) -- Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry denied Russia's allegations that the U.S. Pentagon-controlled bio labs function in the country, Interfax-Azerbaijan agency reported.
Head of the Russian military's radiation, chemical and biological protection troops Maj. Gen. Igor Kirillov earlier alleged that the United States operates more than 30 labs with a high level of biological protection in the Russian neighborhood. "The laboratory buildings continue to be upgraded in Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan," he said.
The Defense Ministry refuted the claims, saying that there are no labs controlled by other states in the territory of Azerbaijan. "So their upgrade is out of the question," the ministry added.
Speaking at a news briefing on Thursday, Maj. Gen. Kirillov stated that the choice of locations of the Pentagon's secret bio facilities is not accidental.
"Many of them are in countries neighboring Russia and China, being a permanent source of biological threats to our countries," he said.
