Russia may use unidentified chemical weapons

Despite international condemnation, Russia continues to use poison gas in Ukraine. Ukrainian experts have not yet been able to identify the new chemical warfare agent.

Julian Severs/t-online

Russia is said to have used natural gas against Ukraine more than 4,000 times this year alone, but a new weapon has Ukraine confused. According to Ukrainian sources, most of the grenades used in the past were grenades containing tear gas. The use of chemical weapons is considered a war crime, including the possible use of chlorobenzylidenemalononitrile compounds by the Russians.

Tear gas is now a well-known factor in Ukraine – wounded soldiers and civilians receive quick and effective treatment. But now Russia is apparently using a new gas previously unknown to Ukraine that causes similar symptoms to classic tear gas. According to the “Kyiv Independent” report, Kyiv is facing a problem.

Colonel Artem Vlasiuk, a Ukrainian chemical weapons expert, explained that a large number of other Russian chemical weapons were also discovered. But this time things are different: of the 323 attacks in October, only 15 could be attributed to one or more gases – the circumstances of the remaining 308 were unknown.

Gas grenades were designed to lure soldiers out of trenches

Russia is expected to use the new agent specifically in Russia's Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces have been causing trouble for Moscow for months. Recently, several soldiers there showed symptoms of a poison gas attack, but the gas was not detected by Ukrainian systems. The Kyiv Independent reported that 2,100 Ukrainian soldiers were injured in the gas attack, but did not explain how long this period lasted.

Russia is apparently using a new gas weapon.Image: Shutterstock

In any case, the idea behind the chemical attack is different – whether it's traditional tear gas grenades or a new, unknown variant: Russian drones dropped gas-laced grenades into Ukrainian trenches, not to kill there them, but to drive them into the open fields. There, Ukrainians are easy targets for Russian drone strikes.

Expert: Ukraine lacks necessary equipment

Vlasiuk said identifying the gas is actually not difficult. But Ukraine lacks the right equipment, costs around six figures per piece and requires additional training from experts. Without these devices, it will be difficult for the Ukrainians to prove that the Russians used chemical weapons, especially to international partners. Without this knowledge, treating symptoms can also be a challenge.

Russia's long-standing use of chemical weapons against Ukraine is also no secret in the West: countries such as the United States and Britain have imposed sanctions on some Russian companies and research laboratories. British chemical weapons expert Hamish Debreton-Gordon estimates that nearly a third of Ukrainian soldiers have fallen victim to Russian poison gas attacks.

According to Ukrainian information, Russia is currently using slightly fewer chemical weapons than recently, but has once again increased its production of RG-Vo gas grenades, but the content is unknown.

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