Home Europe Russia, Ukraine Trade Charges Over Use Of Chemical Weapons

Russia, Ukraine Trade Charges Over Use Of Chemical Weapons

Under the Chemical Weapons Convention, any toxic chemical used with the purpose of causing harm or death is considered a chemical weapon.
Edited By
Ramananda Sengupta
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Chemical weapons
File Photo: The building of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague, Netherlands, October 4, 2018. (Piroschka van de Wouw/REUTERS)

AMSTERDAM: Russia and Ukraine have accused each other at the global chemical weapons watchdog in The Hague of using banned toxins on the battlefield, the organisation said on Tuesday.

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said that the accusations were “insufficiently substantiated” but added: “The situation remains volatile and extremely concerning regarding the possible re-emergence of use of toxic chemicals as weapons.”

Neither Russia nor Ukraine has formally asked the OPCW to investigate the alleged use of chemical weapons, it said.

Last week, the U.S. said Russia had violated the international ban overseen by the OPCW by deploying the choking agent chloropicrin against Ukrainian troops and using riot control agents “as a method of warfare” in Ukraine.

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It followed Ukrainian assertions in April that Russia had increased its use of tear gas in the trenches.

Ukraine’s General Staff said in a statement earlier this month its armed forces had recorded 1,891 cases of Russia using “ammunition equipped with dangerous chemical substances” in the year till April.

Russia has denied allegations of violating the Chemical Weapons Convention.

In documents posted on the OPCW website, Moscow accused Kyiv of using “a wide range of toxic chemicals against Russian servicemen and public officials”, including fertilizers, pesticides and other banned toxins.

Ukrainian officials on Tuesday did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The OPCW said it had been monitoring the situation since February 2022, when Moscow invaded Ukraine. Under the Chemical Weapons Convention, any toxic chemical used with the purpose of causing harm or death is considered a chemical weapon.

“It is against the Convention to use riot control agents at war on the battlefield. If used as a method of warfare, these agents are considered chemical weapons and, hence, are prohibited under the Convention,” the OPCW said.
(REUTERS)

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Ramananda Sengupta
In a career spanning over three decades and counting, I’ve been the Foreign Editor of The Telegraph, Outlook Magazine and The New Indian Express. I helped set up rediff.com’s editorial operations in San Jose and New York, helmed sify.com, and was the founder editor of India.com.

My work has featured in national and international publications like the Al Jazeera Centre for Studies, Global Times and The Asahi Shimbun. My one constant over all these years, however, has been the attempt to understand rising India’s place in the world.

On demand, I can rustle up a mean salad, my oil-less pepper chicken is to die for, and depending on the time of the day, all it takes to rock my soul is some beer and some jazz or good ole rhythm & blues.

Talk to me about foreign and strategic affairs, media, South Asia, China, and of course India.
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