Russia Foreign Ministry has accused Ukraine of using and planning to use chemical weapons in the ongoing conflict, claiming to have irrefutable evidence of these actions. Spokesperson Maria Zakharova stated on Tuesday that the Russian Federation has been monitoring and documenting instances of Ukrainian forces using chemical agents, riot control agents (RCAs), and other chemicals not listed in the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). Zakharova alleged that Ukrainian forces have been using toxic chemicals, including substances listed under CWC schedules 2 (BZ) and 3 (chloropicrin), as well as RCAs, against Russian military units, civilians, and local administration officials. She accused the Ukrainian government of carrying out these actions with the political backing and approval of the United States, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom. Zakharova further alleged that with Western support, Ukraine plans to stage a series of provocations to falsely accuse Russia of CWC violations during combat operations. She claimed that Russian experts have documented Ukraine's breaches of CWC provisions, as well as violations of international drug conventions. "The collective West has created an atmosphere of impunity that emboldens the Kiev regime as it proceeds to perpetrate larger-scale crimes involving toxic chemicals," Zakharova said. The spokesperson also accused NATO countries of providing Ukraine with advanced toxic chemical detection and recording devices, including the latest detectors and gas analysers, and training Ukrainian security forces in methods of evidence falsification. She claimed that NATO countries are working to help Ukraine create a "body of evidence" to further accuse Russia of CWC violations. "We take it that the fabricated 'evidence' cooked up not far from the contact line will, as was previously done in Syria, be swiftly handed over to international experts for a so-called independent report accusing Moscow of chemical weapon use," Zakharova said. Zakharova claimed the motive behind these actions is to achieve a "strategic defeat" for Russia, and that the potential for chemical terrorism emanating from Ukraine is a real concern due to the country's close ties with Islamist-affiliated terrorist groups and nationalist-extremist groups in the Middle East and Africa. She warned Western nations against "playing with fire" and potentially damaging the CWC framework. "The Russian Federation will continue to inform the international community about Kiev's CWC violations and the actual state of affairs in the SMO zone," Zakharova stated. The Russian Foreign Ministry said it will continue to document and report to CWC member states and UN members about the toxic chemicals used by Ukrainian forces against the Russian military and civilians, as well as about planned provocations against chemical facilities in Donbass. "Those responsible for these and other crimes against Russian citizens will be identified and face deserved and inevitable punishment," Zakharova said.
