A Hidden Military Bio-Laboratory Complex Has Been Built in Russia’s Tver Region, Ukraine’s Intelligence Says

Covert Military Bio-Lab Hub in Tver Region

According to ХВИЛЯ: Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR) reports that Russia has built a concealed biological laboratory complex in Tver Oblast. The installation, officially named the Center for Experimental Physiology, is located on Lysyi Island in the Vyshny Volochyok Reservoir. According to HUR, the site is disguised as a veterinary and physiological research center and is heavily guarded.

This latest warning follows earlier Ukrainian intelligence assessments about biological threats linked to Russia’s military activity. Since 2023, the water around the island has been closed to fishing, swimming, and boating, with the area formally designated a “specially protected territory of regional significance.” The reservoir supplies drinking water to nearby communities, including the town of Vyshny Volochyok, and is the source of the Tvertsa River, which flows into the Volga. HUR says the biolab project was carried out on the order of Russian President Vladimir Putin because it is considered essential to “ensuring Russia’s defense capability and security.”

Risk Assessment and Security

Although the facility is formally part of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency, HUR says it is conducting experiments with dangerous viruses and other pathogens in the interest of the Russian armed forces. The site is under reinforced guard, and anti-aircraft missile crews protect it from the air. Defense Minister Andrei Belousov has been assigned responsibility for the security regime.

“If dangerous pathogens or chemicals get into the reservoir from the laboratories, the resulting epidemics and contamination could be catastrophic not just for the region but for the whole of Russia,” HUR said.

In spring 2026, Russia recorded an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease among cattle. HUR does not rule out that this case and similar episodes may have resulted from unsuccessful Russian experiments involving viruses, bacteria, and pathogens. Earlier, the agency reported that occupying forces had created conditions for anthrax to spread in the temporarily occupied territories of Kherson Oblast.

The construction of this complex in Tver Oblast could signal that Russia is expanding its military biotechnology program, raising concerns both inside Ukraine and across the international community. Given the possible epidemic consequences, HUR argues that international organizations should scrutinize the facility’s work and its potential impact on public health and the region’s ecosystem.