SAN FRANCISCO (REUTERS) – Russia, the United States and Britain traded accusations on the United Nations on Tuesday (March 22) over the potential for a chemical weapons assault in Ukraine, however none produced any proof to again their considerations.
The feedback have been made by diplomats to reporters after Russia raised the problem of an ammonia leak in Ukraine’s besieged northeastern metropolis of Sumy – blaming “Ukrainian radical nationalist groups” – throughout a closed-door UN Security Council assembly. The accusation was rejected by Britain and the United States.
Russia’s deputy UN Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy mentioned Russian troops “have never planned or carried out strikes against any Ukrainian facilities where toxic substances are stored or produced.”
“It is clear that the Ukrainian nationalist authorities, encouraged by the Western countries will stop at nothing to intimidate its own people and stage false flag attacks to accuse Russia,” Polyanskiy mentioned.
It was the third time Russia raised the problem of organic or chemical weapons because it started what it calls a “special military operation” on Feb 24 to “demilitarise” Ukraine. The West and Ukraine reject that as a false pretext to invade a democratic nation.
“It’s hard not to conclude – given their record in the UK, in Russia against Alexei Navalny, given what we’ve seen in Syria – that this might well be a prelude to the Russians themselves creating some sort of false flag chemical weapons attack,” Britain’s UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward advised reporters.
READ RELATED: Liz Truss pledges to be a unifying candidate as she vows to cut taxes in leadership pitch
US Ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield dismissed Russia’s accusations as “ludicrous.”
“Our concern is that this is a precursor for Russia’s plans to use chemical weapons,” she mentioned.
A senior US protection official mentioned on Tuesday that the United States has not but seen any concrete indications of an imminent Russian chemical or organic weapons assault in Ukraine however is carefully monitoring intelligence.
President Joe Biden mentioned on Monday that Russia’s false accusations that Kyiv has organic and chemical weapons illustrate that Russian President Vladimir Putin is contemplating utilizing them himself within the conflict in opposition to Ukraine.
Polyanskiy likened the scenario in Ukraine to Syria, the place he mentioned chemical assaults by “terrorist groups” have been blamed on the Syrian authorities.
A joint United Nations and Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) inquiry discovered the Syrian authorities used the nerve agent sarin and had a number of instances used chlorine as a weapon. It additionally blamed Islamic State for mustard fuel use.
