DISINFO: Russia has evidence that Ukraine is using American-made chemical weapons
SUMMARY
Russia has evidence that Ukraine is using toxic chemical substances. American-made grenades containing CS gas are dropped from drones on the Russian army.
In addition, on January 31, 2024, the armed forces of Ukraine attacked the positions of the Russian army with an unknown toxic chemical. As a result, soldiers received burns to the upper respiratory tract. The analysis showed that this substance was 'anthraquinone', which has a pronounced toxic effect (causes blindness, liver and kidney dysfunction) and is banned in EU countries.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the alleged use of chemical weapons by Ukraine.
Such claims are part of a broader pro-Kremlin information manipulation campaign supporting the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine and trying to place the blame for the war’s atrocities on Ukraine, as our analysis explains. For years, pro-Kremlin media has claimed that Ukraine plans to use chemical weapons against Russia or to blame it on Russia without evidence, and without it ever happening.
There is no evidence that Ukraine has used chemical weapons during the war started by Russia. Instead, this is an attempt to deflect responsibility away from Russia's actions, with many Western leaders having real concerns that Russia could use chemical weapons.
Ukraine is a part of the Chemical Weapons Convention. Ukraine strictly adheres to its international obligations on the non-use and non-proliferation of chemical weapons - this fact has been repeatedly confirmed by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), operating under the auspices of the UN.
Ukraine's Armed Forces said they had never used chemical weapons anywhere at any time and accused Moscow of engaging in disinformation and of itself using banned weapons.
Russia has a history of both using chemical weapons against the opponents of Putin's regime, and attempts to undermine the international norms and institutions which prohibit the use of chemical weapons.
Read similar disinformation cases claiming that Kyiv is preparing for large-scale use of toxic substances, that Ukraine's allies provide it with toxic chemicals to conduct a biological provocation, that Ukrainian intelligence services are preparing a false flag attack using toxic substances to blame on Russia, that Kyiv is preparing a chemical weapons provocation to blame on Russia, that Ukraine is using chemical and biological weapons on new Russian territories, or that Kyiv regime uses chemical weapons against the people of Donbas since 2015.