Chinese scientists sequenced the genome of SARS-CoV-2 in early January 2020 and by March of that year had “irrefutably” concluded the virus was not of human design. Since then, the goalposts have shifted repeatedly in an attempt to keep laboratory escape a viable theory, despite no evidence to support the continued supposition.

Mass deforestation, industrialised animal agriculture and reductions in biodiversity are among a number of factors which increase the likelihood of the emergence and spread of dangerous pathogens such as the coronavirus disease 2019, explains scientist Dr Rob Wallace in an exclusive interview with Sputnik.

Between 1965 the 1975, the United States Air Force dropped over three times more bombs on the Southeast Asian nations of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia than the total tonnage dropped by the Allies during World War II.

Hubris is usually a forewarning of impending calamity. Extreme arrogance blinds the hubristic person to the limits of their power. So, blindly, they push on with reckless excess, leading to potentially disastrous results.

The U.S. has revitalised its old Monroe Doctrine, seeking to take Latin America countries and most notably Venezuela, famous for its rich oil reserves, under control, French journalist Gilbert Mercier has told Sputnik, explaining why the “overt coup attempt” in Caracas is doomed to failure.

According to Russian Central Bank figures, Russia’s total gold reserves amounted to 1,944 tons as of June 2018, with the regulator pointing to a steady rise in holdings of the precious metal over the last decade (total gold reserves amounted to less than 500 tons in 2008). In the same period, the share of gold in Russia’s total reserves grew from just 2.5 percent to over 17 percent.