MOSCOW. Oct 26 (Interfax) - Head of Russia's consumer rights watchdog (Rospotrebnadzor) Gennady Onishchenko has disagreed with former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Richard Holbrook, who said that Russia is losing the fight against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

"Such statements have nothing to do with reality. I know of no one with that last name among specialists who deal with infectious diseases. Actually, such statements have only one goal -a political one," Onishchenko told Interfax.

Holbrook, who leads the Global Business Coalition against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, said at a forum in Moscow yesterday that Russia was losing the fight against these infectious diseases.

"As far as I know, the U.S. had a major defeat recently in dealing with new infections, when their national system failed. There are plenty of examples: epidemic situations that proved the helplessness of not only their national health system but also of their security agencies," Onishchenko said.

"However, I would recommend steering the discussion toward professional talk with proposals and an exchange of opinions. This would be more beneficial to us. We have something to learn from each other," Onishchenko said.