UK sanctions Russian chemical defense forces

The UK has accused Russia of using chemical weapons against Ukraine and announced new sanctions targeting the country’s Radiological Chemical and Biological Defense Forces (RChBD). The accusations come a day after the head of the RChBD, Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, accused Ukraine of preparing a false-flag chemical weapons attack with the aim of framing Russia.

Moscow insists it destroyed the last of its chemical weapons several years ago, with the process overseen by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

In a statement on Tuesday, the British government condemned what it called “Russia’s flagrant violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC),” which has been signed by virtually every country in the world.

The UK claimed that the Russian forces “have openly admitted to using hazardous chemical weapons on the battlefield, with widespread use of riot control agents and multiple reports of the use of the toxic choking agent chloropicrin.”

London sanctioned both the RChBD and Igor Kirillov, who it said was directly responsible for the alleged violations, as well as two laboratories operating under the purview of the Russian Defense Ministry. The sanctions include a travel ban, an asset freeze, and a prohibition on providing economic resources to the designated entities.

UK officials also accused Kirillov of being “a significant mouthpiece for Kremlin disinformation.”

On Monday, Kirillov accused Ukraine of preparing a false-flag chemical weapons attack to frame Russia and undermine its position at the OPCW. He noted that NATO had provided Ukraine with a much larger amount of chemical protective equipment than the country actually needs, adding that this is further evidence of an impending plot.

The general also rejected claims that Russia had been attacking Ukraine with riot control agents and chemical weapons, recalling that the OPCW had confirmed the complete destruction of all Russian chemical weapons stockpiles in 2017. He added that the destruction process had been monitored by both the agency and inspectors from Western countries, including the US.

Moscow has repeatedly accused Ukraine of using chemical weapons on the battlefield and of hosting American biolabs on its territory.