(RIA "Novosti") A consignment of 124 samples, containing 62 unique strains of plague, anthrax, cholera and a number of other dangerous diseases is delivered from Azerbaijan to Washington.
The samples are brought to the laboratory of the Institute of Pathology of the US Armed Forces in Washington in the framework of the "Nann-Lugar program on reducing threat”, Trend reports.
Pathogens were delivered on the military transport aircraft of the US Air Forces on 2 September 2005 after a relevant accord was achieved during the trip of Lugar in Baku and his talks with the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, a chairman of the Senate committee on foreign affairs Richard Lugar, one of the authors of the program said in his statement for
the press.
"It is an important cooperation between our two governments on fighting the threat of the biological terrorism and prevention of spreading the biological weapon, materials, technologies and experience”, the Lugar’s statement underlines.
The senator also reported, transfer of the samples of dangerous diseases which may be used as the biological weapon is performed in the framework of the bilateral agreement between the Pentagon and the Cabinet of Ministers of Azerbaijan on a joint reducing of the biological threat.
In accordance with this agreement the USA and Azerbaijan will ensure improvement of the security measures at the central laboratory of pathogens of Azerbaijan, as well as enable the Azerbaijani scientists to have trainings in the USA. The strains of dangerous diseases pathogens, delivered to Washington will be “studied jointly with the USA Defense Ministry and the Azerbaijani medical researches”, the report says.