US accuses Russia of using chemical weapons in Ukraine

The State Department accused Russia on Thursday of using chemical weapons in Ukraine, following a new set of sanctions against the country.

Russia violated the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act by using the chemical weapon chloropicrin against Ukrainian troops, the department said. The lung-damaging chemical was used as a poison gas in World War I.

The new sanctions come after Ukrainian military leadership first accused Russia in February of using the gas in more than 800 attacks over the course of the war. Moscow denied the allegations at the time, countering that Ukrainian forces are the ones that used banned chemical weapons.

The State and Treasury Department sanctions announced Wednesday include some targeted to Russia’s chemical and biological weapons programs. The sanctions also target about 80 other companies involved in the Russian defense industry and more than 280 individuals assisting the war effort, the State Department said.

Individuals targeted include those associated with the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in prison under suspicious circumstances earlier this year. The Biden administration has said Russian President Vladimir Putin is responsible for the death.

The sanctions also target Chinese companies accused of assisting Russian military efforts.

“Yesterday’s action specifically reflects the concern of the United States and our international partners with entities based in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) that both produce and provide critical inputs to Russia’s military-industrial base,” the State Department wrote in a statement.

Wednesday’s sanctions separately ban the import of Russian uranium for use in nuclear energy production.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the sanctions “further disrupt and degrade Russia’s war efforts by going after its military industrial base and the evasion networks that help supply it.”