Surveillance of bacterial disease in wartime Ukraine.

Abstract

This analysis considers circulation of bacterial disease in wartime Ukraine. Anthrax, brucellosis, botulism and tularaemia are all naturally occurring in the country. The causative agents of these diseases also formed components of the biological weapons programme the Russian Federation inherited from the Soviet Union at the end of the Cold War. Differentiating between natural and unnatural outbreaks of disease in Ukraine is essential for combating disinformation and maintaining health security as the war intensifies.