Russia used chemical weapons in 9,000 attacks on Ukraine, intelligence report says

Russia is increasingly using a wide range of chemical weapons against Ukraine, the Dutch intelligence services MIVD and AIVD warned on Friday. The Russian military has used chemical weapons to carry out over 9,000 attacks in Ukraine since 2022, the Dutch intelligence services said, citing information from the Ukrainian government.

The use of tear gas and even chloropicrin by Russian troops “has now been standardized and is commonplace,” the services said. Chloropicrin is deadly in enclosed spaces, and the Chemical Weapons Convention prohibits its use in all circumstances. “It is very likely that this will continue to be a threat in the future,” the AIVD and MIVD said. Russia is investing heavily in its chemical weapons program and is recruiting new scientists.

Chemical weapons are often used as a tactic to force Ukrainian troops out into the open to then be slaughtered. “At least three deaths have been directly attributed by Ukraine to exposure to chemical weapons,” the Dutch services said. “Indirectly, the Russian use of chemical weapons leads to many more Ukrainian fatalities. This is because the use of chemical weapons forces many Ukrainian soldiers to leave their shelters. They are then killed with conventional munitions.”

It was already known that Russia uses tear gas in Ukraine. The now-established use of chloropicrin is very concerning, the services said. “It shows that Russia is intensifying its use of chemical weapons,” said Vice Admiral Peter Reesink, director of the MIVD. “At the same time, we see that Russia is deploying these types of weapons with increasing ease. This increases the threat posed by the Russian chemical weapons program.”

Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans called Russia’s systematic and substantial use of chemical weapons “completely unacceptable,” writing to parliament. “We are making this public now because the Russian use of chemical weapons must not be normalized. If the threshold for the use of these types of weapons is lowered, this is not only dangerous for Ukraine but also for the rest of Europe and the world.”