By Iclal Turan
WASHINGTON (AA) - The US has accused Russia of using chemical weapons "as a method of warfare" in Ukraine and announced new sanctions on more than 280 individuals and entities.
“The Department of State has made a determination under the CBW Act that Russia has used the chemical weapon chloropicrin against Ukrainian forces in violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC),” the Department of State said in a statement on Wednesday.
“The use of such chemicals is not an isolated incident, and is probably driven by Russian forces’ desire to dislodge Ukrainian forces from fortified positions and achieve tactical gains on the battlefield,” the statement said, while noting Russia's alleged operations to poison Aleksey Navalny and Sergei and Yulia Skripal with Novichok nerve agents.
The State Department also accused Russian armed forces of breaching the global ban on the chemical weapons by using chloropicrin against Ukrainian troops.
Russia dismissed the accusations, with Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov saying that they are “absolutely groundless, not supported by anything.”