Chemical weapons menace rising amid Ukraine battle, warns watchdog | World News

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has elevated the menace from weapons of mass destruction together with chemical munitions, the pinnacle of the world's poisonous arms watchdog mentioned on Monday.

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) was intently monitoring the state of affairs in Ukraine, its chief Fernando Arias instructed the regulator's annual assembly.

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"The state of affairs in Ukraine has once more elevated the true menace posed by weapons of mass destruction, together with chemical weapons," Arias instructed the assembly in The Hague.

"It has exacerbated current tensions to a degree the place unity of the worldwide neighborhood on frequent world challenges associated to worldwide safety and peace can't be presumed."

Worldwide disarmament our bodies just like the Nobel Peace Prize-winning OPCW "now have develop into locations for confrontation and disagreement", Arias lamented.

Threats and allegations concerning the attainable use of nuclear, chemical and organic weapons have been traded for the reason that battle in Ukraine started in February, however with no proof they've been deployed.

Arias reminded Russia and Ukraine that they have been amongst 193 international locations which have "solemnly and voluntarily dedicated by no means beneath any circumstances to... use chemical weapons".

He mentioned the OPCW "continues to intently monitor this severe state of affairs and stays involved with the everlasting representations of the Russian Federation and Ukraine".

The OPCW has supplied Ukraine, at its request, with coaching for first responders for chemical assaults and for the detection of chemical leaks, Arias mentioned.

'Preposterous'

Russia's ally Syria in the meantime remained in "severe failure to conform" with the watchdog on its chemical weapons, the director-general mentioned.

Damascus had refused to provide a visa to an OPCW inspector and had failed to finish any of the measures demanded by the regulator, mentioned Arias.

Syria denies the usage of chemical weapons and insists it has handed over its stockpiles beneath a 2013 deal, prompted by a suspected sarin gasoline assault that killed 1,400 within the Damascus suburb of Ghouta.

However Syria was stripped of its OPCW voting rights in 2021 after a probe blamed it for additional poison gasoline assaults.

Western international locations criticised each Russia and Syria on the assembly.

US beneath secretary of state for arms management and worldwide safety Bonnie Jenkins slammed Russia's "preposterous, unfounded, and alarming" allegations about Ukrainian use or plans to make use of chemical arms.

Jenkins additionally accused Russia of chemical weapons use within the Novichok nerve agent assaults on former Russian spy Sergei Skripal within the English metropolis of Salisbury in 2018 and Kremlin opponent Alexei Navalny in Russia in 2020.

Russia denies any involvement in both incident.

Syria in the meantime "has proven solely contempt" for the OPCW, the US official mentioned.

British junior defence minister Annabel Goldie mentioned that "Russia's battle (in Ukraine) shouldn't be one thing we will ignore right here within the OPCW".

"We have now seen this sample of deceitful behaviour in Syria and now we're seeing it in Ukraine," Goldie mentioned.