Servicemen of the Ukrainian National Guard undergo training to storm enemy trenches using simulation equipment as the war between Russia and Ukraine continues in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine on February 29, 2024.
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The United States officially accused Russia of using chemical weapons against Ukrainian troops and announced Wednesday evening that it was imposing more sanctions on Russian individuals and entities.
The US State Department issued a statement late Wednesday accusing Russia of violating the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), which prohibits the production and use of chemical weapons, by using chloropicrin, a suffocating agent, against Ukrainian forces.
“We make this decision in addition to our assessment that Russia used riot control agents (tear gas) as a method of warfare in Ukraine, also in violation of the CWC. The use of such chemicals is not an isolated incident and is likely motivated by the desire of Russian forces to dislodge Ukrainian forces from fortified positions and achieve tactical gains on the battlefield,” the statement said.
Chloropicrin was used as a poison gas during World War I, but is now more commonly used in agriculture as an insecticide. No longer authorized for military use, the “choking agent” inflicts injuries mainly on the respiratory tract. It irritates the nose, throat and especially the lungs.
“When inhaled, these agents cause the secretion of fluid from the alveoli, the air sacs in the lungs, thereby drowning those affected,” says the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.
Servicemen of the Ukrainian National Guard undergo training to storm enemy trenches using simulation equipment as the war between Russia and Ukraine continues in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine on February 29, 2024.
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In February, Ukraine accused Russia of using chemical weapons in more than 200 battlefield attacks in January alone. Russia has denied the allegations and in turn accused Ukraine of using chemical weapons. Neither has provided proof of their claims, although the soldiers have complained of injuries caused by chemical agents.
The use of CS, or tear gas, is also prohibited as a method of warfare; once again, both countries accused each other of using tear gas during the conflict.
The United States said Russia’s use of such weapons demonstrated “continued disregard” of its obligations to the CWC, a global treaty banning the production, stockpiling and use of chemical weapons.
Russia is among 193 countries that have ratified the convention, which calls on signatories to declare their stockpiles of banned chemical weapons and facilities and work to destroy those stockpiles.
The continued use of such weapons, the State Department said, “stems from the same pattern as its operations to poison Alexei Navalny, Sergei and Yulia Skripal with Novichok nerve agents,” referring to the alleged poisoning by the State of opponents of the Kremlin by nerve agents in 2007. recent years. Russia has denied any involvement in these incidents.
A gas mask used by Russian forces is seen amid waste at the Kherson city landfill November 22, 2022 in Kherson, Ukraine. In
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The United States said it is designating three Russian government entities “associated with Russia’s chemical and biological weapons programs and four Russian companies providing support to these entities.”
The Treasury Department, meanwhile, sanctions three entities and two individuals “involved in purchasing items for military institutes involved in Russia’s chemical and biological weapons programs.”
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