The United Kingdom has implemented new sanctions against Russian officials and a scientific institution for their alleged involvement in the use of chemical weapons in Ukraine. These measures include sanctions on Lieutenant General Alexei Rtishchev, head of Russia’s Radiological, Chemical and Biological Defense Troops, his deputy Andrei Marchenko, and the Scientific Research Institute of Applied Chemistry. The U.K. government has cited these parties for their role in providing support for prohibited activities related to chemical weapons, including the supply of handheld chemical grenades to Russian military forces used against Ukrainian Armed Forces. The sanctions have been introduced amid international concerns regarding Russia’s increasing use of banned chemical agents in its conflict with Ukraine.
Recent reports by the Netherlands Military Intelligence and Security Service (MIVD) have indicated a rising trend in the deployment of chemical weapons by Russian forces, including the use of chloropicrin, a highly toxic World War I-era agent. The agents are reportedly used by Russian troops to flush Ukrainian soldiers from trenches, exposing them to further drone or artillery strikes. Dutch Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans has criticized the confirmed use of chloropicrin as ‘absolutely unacceptable’, emphasizing the violation of international law. These developments come as Ukrainian authorities claim that over 9,000 chemical attacks have been conducted since the full-scale invasion began in 2022, resulting in at least three reported deaths among Ukrainian soldiers.