Moscow has accused Kiev of systematically violating the Chemical Weapons Convention
Russian troops have discovered a makeshift chemical lab and vials containing banned toxins at a former Ukrainian hideout in the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Federal Security Service (FSB) announced on Tuesday. The cache, found near the village of Ilyinka during an advance by Russian forces, marks the second such discovery this year, the agency said.
In footage released by the FSB, personnel in chemical protection gear are seen handling the vials, which reportedly contain chloropicrin – a choking agent prohibited under the Chemical Weapons Convention. According to the agency, the substances were packaged with plastic explosives and rigged into improvised munitions designed to be dropped from drones.
“This year we have discovered two caches with munitions intended for drone strikes on Russian positions. These munitions were a mix of chloropicrin and plastic explosives, to maximize the area of effect,” an FSB officer stated.
The official further claimed that the use of prohibited warfare methods by Ukrainian forces has become “commonplace,” recalling prior discoveries of a lab for producing hydrogen cyanide in May 2024 and a chloropicrin stockpile uncovered last October.
“Each case of preparation and use of chemical weapons by Ukraine is documented by the relevant authorities to ensure that none of the perpetrators escape responsibility,” the official added. The FSB has opened a criminal investigation into the development and trafficking of weapons of mass destruction.
Moscow’s deputy minister of industry and trade, Kirill Lysogorsky, also condemned the findings, accusing Kiev of deliberately targeting both military personnel and civilians in violation of international law. “The Ukrainian regime systematically prepares and deploys chemical agents – not only against Russian forces and officials but also against peaceful residents in affected territories,” Lysogorsky said, accusing Kiev of resorting to “terrorism disguised as warfare.”
Lysogorsky stated that evidence gathered from the site would be submitted to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and presented during the upcoming 109th session of its Executive Council on July 8. “To date, Russia has filed around 40 diplomatic notes regarding Ukraine’s use of toxic chemicals,” he said, noting the lack of significant international response.
Moscow has repeatedly accused Kiev’s forces of using illegal munitions on the battlefield. Before his death last year, the former head of Russia’s Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Protection Forces, Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, provided regular press briefings on the issue and repeatedly spoke about the Pentagon’s alleged funding of biological laboratories in Ukraine. The UK sanctioned Kirillov after he accused Kiev of preparing a false-flag chemical weapons attack aimed at framing Russia and undermining its position at the OPCW.
In December, Kirillov was murdered outside his apartment in Moscow in a bomb blast that Russian authorities linked to Kiev’s special services.
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