The U.S. has formally accused Russia of using chemical weapons against Ukrainian troops and announced late Wednesday that it is imposing more sanctions on Russian individuals and entities. The U.S. State Department released a statement late Wednesday in which it accused Russia of violating the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) by using the choking agent chloropicrin against Ukrainian forces. “The use of such chemicals is not an isolated incident and is probably driven by Russian forces’ desire to dislodge Ukrainian forces from fortified positions and achieve tactical gains on the battlefield,” the State Department said in the statement. Chloropicrin is listed as a banned choking agent by the Hague-based Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), which was created to implement and monitor compliance with the 1993 CWC. German forces fired the gas against Allied troops during World War I in one of the first uses of a chemical weapon.
In addition to chloropicrin, Russian forces have used grenades loaded with CS and CN gases, the Ukrainian military says. It says at least 500 Ukrainian soldiers have been treated for exposure to toxic substances and one was killed by suffocating on tear gas. The CWC bans the production and use of chemical weapons; it also requires the 193 countries that have ratified the convention, which include Russia and the U.S., to destroy any stocks of banned chemicals.
Russia denies that they have used such weaponry. Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov told reporters “Yes, we saw the news on this matter. As always, such announcements sound absolutely unfounded and are not supported by anything. Russia has been and remains committed to its obligations under international law in this area.”
The Kremlin is ramping up attacks on Eastern Ukraine. Russia’s Defense Ministry said its troops have captured the village of Berdychi in Donetsk, marking the latest advance in the eastern Ukrainian region. Ukraine has not verified this claim, however, the region reported a shortage of artillery and ammunition.
Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said “Putin’s increasingly aggressive tactics against Ukraine, such as strikes on Ukraine’s electricity infrastructure, are intended to impress Ukraine that continuing to fight will only increase the damage to Ukraine and offer no plausible path to victory. These aggressive tactics are likely to continue, and the war is unlikely to end anytime soon.”
