A U.S. House of Representatives committee wants to learn more about the dismissal of two Canadian scientists from Canada’s high-security infectious-disease laboratory in Winnipeg.

By Robert Fife | Published by The Globe & Mail

Summary

Concerns surrounding security breaches at Canada’s National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg have prompted a U.S. congressional committee to summon the country’s Director of National Intelligence for a briefing on the firing of two Canadian scientists from Ottawa’s infectious-disease laboratory in Winnipeg.

The House of Representatives committee on energy and commerce is investigating the activities of Xiangguo Qiu and Keding Cheng at Canada’s National Microbiology Laboratory. Dr. Qiu was involved in approving the transfer of Ebola and Henipah viruses to China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology in 2018. The committee expressed concerns that Dr. Qiu may have provided genetic sequences, intellectual property related to Ebola research, and potentially other pathogens to China without authorization.

The committee described the scientists as Chinese spies who allegedly infiltrated the Winnipeg lab, citing CSIS reports suggesting their involvement in enhancing China’s biosecurity capabilities for infectious-disease research.

Additionally, the House of Commons special committee on Canada-China relations is investigating how these scientists operated without adequate scrutiny and allowed access to Chinese military scientists and students at the Winnipeg lab.

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