The US military allegedly contracted some of its research on biological weapons to the government established by the 2014 coup in Kiev, according to statements made by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a prospective Democratic candidate for the presidency.

In an interview with independent journalist Tucker Carlson, Kennedy claimed that the US has biological laboratories in Ukraine engaged in bioweapons development, justified by the post-9/11 Patriot Act despite the ban on bioweapons signed in the 1970s.

Kennedy suggested that these activities were disguised as “life sciences” research, including experiments like enhancing the virulence of viruses, overseen by Dr. Anthony Fauci, the former head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Kennedy described modern bioweapons as utilizing genetic engineering tools like CRISPR, and he asserted that some of these research activities were moved overseas after an Obama-era ban on gain-of-function research.

He claimed that Ukraine and the Wuhan laboratory in China were involved, with funding mainly coming from the Pentagon and USAID, which he labeled as a “CIA cutout.”

While the US initially dismissed allegations of biological research facilities in Ukraine as “Russian propaganda,” a senior State Department official confirmed their existence during a 2022 Senate hearing.

The Pentagon maintains that the research is lawful and not intended for military use.

Kennedy also touched on the Ukraine conflict, suggesting that the public has been misled.

He pointed to Victoria Nuland’s role in the 2014 coup and the Project for the New American Century’s vision of NATO expansion to argue that war with Russia has been a long-standing US plan.

He accused the US of undermining peace talks and contributing to the deaths of Ukrainian and Russian individuals. Kennedy, a relative of former President John F. Kennedy, is challenging incumbent President Joe Biden for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination.