U.S. State Department: Russia Violated Convention and Uses Banned Chemical Weapons in Ukraine

The US Department of State has confirmed that the aggressor country is in violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention and has used chlorine against Ukrainian troops, as well as chemical agents to suppress riots.

"The use of such chemicals is not an isolated incident and is likely driven by Russian forces' desire to dislodge Ukrainian forces from fortified positions and achieve tactical advantages on the battlefield," the State Department said.    

As an additional example of Russia's disregard for its obligations to ban the use of chemical weapons, the US drew parallels with the poisoning of Alexei Navalny and Sergei and Yulia Skripal with the Novichok nerve agent.

In this regard, the US State Department imposed sanctions on the Russian Ministry of Defence's Radiation, Chemical and Biological Defence Troops, the Russian Research Institute of Applied Acoustics and the 48th Central Research Institute of the Russian Ministry of Defence, which are involved in the development of chemical weapons.

Four companies involved in Russia's chemical weapons programme were also sanctioned.

In turn, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine welcomed the decision of the United States to impose additional restrictive measures against Russia related to the aggressor state's unleashing a full-scale war against Ukraine and the use of chemical weapons.

"The flywheel of justice is working. No country or official will be immune from liability for the crimes committed. Russia will definitely be brought to justice, and the perpetrators will be brought before a fair international court," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine stressed.

As a reminder, the day before, the US Treasury Department announced the imposition of sanctions against approximately 200 individuals and legal entities that assist the Russian military-industrial complex in evading existing sanctions.

In particular, the United States imposed sanctions against about 60 individuals from Azerbaijan, Belgium, China, Russia, Slovakia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates who facilitated Moscow's acquisition of technology and equipment abroad. More than 100 organisations on the new sanctions list have worked or are working in the technology, defence, industrial and transport sectors of the Russian economy.

In cooperation with the U.S. Treasury Department, the U.S. Department of State imposed sanctions on more than 80 individuals who evaded sanctions against Russia or are associated with chemical and biological weapons programmes and the Russian defence industrial base.