Kyiv requested a formal investigation into Russia’s suspected use of toxic munitions, following fresh intelligence findings from Dutch and German agencies.
Ukraine has formally asked the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to launch an investigation into Russia’s alleged use of banned chemical weapons against Ukrainian forces.
The request, submitted on Tuesday to the OPCW’s governing body in The Hague, urged the Director-General to establish “an independent and impartial mechanism” to investigate reported cases and to gather evidence that could help identify “perpetrators, organisers, [and] sponsors” of the chemical attacks.
The move comes after Dutch and German intelligence services announced on Friday that they had gathered evidence pointing to widespread use of prohibited chemical agents by Russian forces along the frontlines in Ukraine.
The OPCW previously set up a similar investigative team in 2018 to examine chemical weapons use in Syria’s civil war. That team concluded both Syrian government forces and Islamic State militants had deployed banned toxic substances.
Accusations of chemical weapons use in the Ukraine conflict surfaced as early as May last year, when the United States said Russia had deployed chloropicrin—a toxic compound originally used by Germany in World War I and far more harmful than typical riot control agents.
While both Russia and Ukraine have denied deploying chemical weapons during the ongoing war, the OPCW said last year that mutual accusations from both sides were “insufficiently substantiated.”
According to Dutch military intelligence, at least three Ukrainian soldiers have died from exposure to toxic agents. Additionally, over 2,500 battlefield casualties have reported symptoms consistent with chemical weapons exposure, according to Ukraine’s health authorities.
The OPCW’s Executive Council, comprising 41 member states, is currently holding four days of closed-door meetings in The Hague. The organisation has not issued a public response to Ukraine’s request.
Meanwhile, Britain on Monday announced new sanctions targeting two Russian individuals and one Russian entity under its chemical weapons regime, in a continued effort to penalise Moscow for its actions in Ukraine.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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