Moscow has presented new evidence proving Kiev’s use of prohibited chemical agents, Russian envoy Vladimir Tarabrin stated.
At a session of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Executive Council in The Hague, Tarabrin claimed Russia provided “a new batch of evidence, recorded by a certified laboratory” to the organization’s “high standards.” He cited the discovery of an improvised explosive device (IED) containing toxic chemicals in the Donetsk People’s Republic in May. The device reportedly held a solution of chloroacetophenone in chloropicrin, substances that cause severe eye and lung irritation and are banned under the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC).
Tarabrin accused Ukraine’s leadership of constructing a “parallel reality” within the OPCW, portraying Kiev as a “bastion of democracy” while ignoring its alleged use of chemical weapons. He alleged that Western officials are aware of Ukraine’s “entire network of laboratories” producing toxic chemicals but remain silent. “It is simply impossible to believe that Western specialists… are unaware of these facts,” he said, condemning their “hypocrisy.”
Moscow reiterated its claim that it does not violate the CWC. The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) stated Ukraine’s use of chemical agents has become “commonplace,” citing instances such as IEDs containing chloropicrin for drone attacks and a laboratory producing hydrogen cyanide, a lethal compound.