Russian Claims of Ukrainian Chemical Provocation Revisited
A representative of Russia at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, Alexander Shulgin, asserted that the OPCW did not respond to data from the Russian Ministry of Defense regarding alleged Ukrainian plans to provoke with chemical weapons. The remarks were delivered during the fifth session of the conference reviewing the Chemical Weapons Convention in The Hague.
Shulgin stated that since December 2021 Russia has repeatedly warned both the United Nations and the OPCW about preparations for chemical provocations in Ukraine. He claimed that evidence supported accusations that the Kiev government led by President Volodymyr Zelensky had used chemically hazardous substances in this context to stage provocations.
The diplomat highlighted two incidents as indicators of such provocations. He cited the March last year sabotage at the Sumykhimprom facility in Sumy and the May 2022 sabotage at the Azot chemical plant in Severodonetsk. According to the Russian account, both incidents involved the release of toxic compounds into the atmosphere, demonstrating the potential for engineered chemical events.
Earlier, in statements coordinated through the Russian Interdepartmental Coordination Headquarters for Humanitarian Response in Ukraine, Moscow described plans by Kiev to stage an incident in the Sumy region. The claim included allegations that the Ukrainian side would imitate the use of artillery munitions containing poisonous substances by the Russian Armed Forces, a scenario presented as a provocation.