This is a particularly serious accusation against Moscow. The United States considers that Russia used a chemical agent, chloropicrin, against Ukrainian forces, in violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CIWC), according to a press release Wednesday from the Department of Defense. State.
Russia would also use riot control agents as a “method of war in Ukraine, also in violation of the convention,” adds American diplomacy.
A use which “is not an isolated incident”
“The use of these chemicals is not an isolated incident and is likely motivated by the desire of Russian forces to dislodge Ukrainian forces from fortified positions and make tactical advances on the battlefield,” the Department of Defense wrote. ‘State.
“Russia’s ongoing disregard for its obligations under the CIAC is consistent with the operations of poisoning Alexei Navalny and Sergei and Yulia Skripal with Novichok-type nerve agents,” continues Washington. Alexeï Navalny, former opponent of Vladimir Putin, died on February 16, was the victim of serious poisoning which he attributed to the Kremlin. Former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia Skripal were poisoned in England in 2018.
Russia has said it no longer possesses a military chemical arsenal, but the country faces pressure for more transparency over the use of toxic weapons it is accused of. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), chloropicrin is a chemical that has been used as a warfare agent and pesticide and, if inhaled, poses a health risk.
A new wave of sanctions
At the same time, Washington announced on Wednesday a new wave of sanctions targeting Russian or foreign companies or individuals accused of participating in the Russian war effort. In addition to Russian defense companies, these sanctions also concern several research units and companies involved in Russian chemical and biological weapons programs.
Among the foreign companies targeted, 16 are Chinese or Hong Kong, most of them accused of helping Russia to supply components which are normally prohibited, but also, for two of them, of having procured the materials necessary for the production of munitions. The sanctions concern companies from five other countries: the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Azerbaijan, as well as two members of the European Union, Belgium and Slovakia.
Finally, the sanctions also concern Russian gas and oil infrastructures, while Moscow seeks to develop those which would allow it to more easily export its hydrocarbons, in particular to China.