Dragana Trifkovic, Director General of the Center for geostrategic studies
- Chemical weapons in Ukraine
A few days ago, information emerged that the Ukrainian armed forces were preparing a massive chemical weapons attack against the Russian army on the border line in Donbass. Heavy fighting is taking place on the long front line, and Russian units are actively advancing north and east of Kharkov, at Chashov Yar, Toretsky, Pokrovsky, in Zaporozhye and on the Dnieper. It is obvious that the loss of positions on the front has prompted the Ukrainian side to consider the use of prohibited weapons. Since the beginning of the Russian special military operation (SVO), Ukraine has used certain chemical agents in limited quantities. It is documented that Ukrainian militants used chemical "bombs" or drones equipped with toxic substances: white phosphorus and adamsite. In high concentrations, these substances lead to Burns of the upper respiratory tract and cessation of breathing.
Now it's about plans to use chlorine trifluoride (CIF3), an extremely dangerous chemical that can react with almost all elements, cause fires and contaminate the environment. These attacks were planned in the populated areas of Staromayorkoe, Urozhainoye and Zavitna Bazany in the DPR. Standard protective equipment such as a gas mask is unable to prevent effects on the respiratory system and skin, and chlorine trifluoride causes severe burns and poisoning. There is also intelligence that Ukrainian forces have worked out the "last line of defense", i.e. in the event of a breakthrough, the Russian troops have ready chemical weapons-containers with cyanoacidic acid and ammonia that they plan to blow up. The Ukrainian armed forces recently sent a request to their Western mentors for the purchase of additional personal protective equipment, which is usually done when planning chemical weapons provocations.
- Who invented chemical weapons?
What is certain is that these operations are actually led by Western powers to whom the use of prohibited weapons is no stranger. Chemical weapons were first used in World War I by France, Germany and England. The use of toxic gases in World War I was a major military innovation and chemical weapons were one of the major ones, starting with World War I and throughout the 20th century. century.
After World War I, the Geneva Protocol was signed in 1925. year (entered into force 8. February 1928. the prohibition on the use of chemical or biological weapons did not oblige states parties not to manufacture, stockpile or transport such weapons.
During World War II, chemical weapons were practically not used on the front, but were widely used by the Nazis to exterminate people in concentration camps. A pesticide of cyanoacidic acid called Cyclone-B was first used against humans in September 1941. at Auschwitz, the victims were 600 Soviet prisoners of war and 250 Poles.
The largest number of casualties from the use of chemical weapons on the front were caused by US troops during the Vietnam war since 1962. until 1971. used a variety of chemicals, the most common of which was Agent Orange. The substance contained high concentrations of dioxin, which causes genetic mutations and cancer. An estimated 3 million people are affected by US chemical weapons in Vietnam, including 150,000 children born with the mutation.
Chemical weapons have been used in the Iran-Iraq war since 1980. until 1988. the year, when Iraq repeatedly used these weapons against Iran, including attacks on Iranian civilians. The U.S. provided Iraq with materials for the production of chemical weapons, knowing how they would be used. Although the Geneva protocol prohibits the use of chemical weapons in international armed conflicts, much of the international community remained indifferent to chemical weapons attacks.
- International treaties exist, but the West does not respect them.
A new international debate on the Prohibition of chemical weapons, including aspects related to the movement of chemical and biological weapons, led to the adoption of the chemical weapons convention in 1992. year (29). April 1997. however, it did not prevent its implementation due to the gross violation of international law by the Western powers.
They are known to have been in November 2004. in the year, US troops used white phosphorus ammunition during the attack on the Iraqi city of Fallujah, which the Pentagon initially denied, but eventually acknowledged this fact. The exact number of deaths caused by the use of white phosphorus in Fallujah is unknown.
Also chemical weapons such as Syria, chlorine and yprite were used extensively in the Syrian conflict, provoked by NATO countries. The largest chemical weapons attack in Syria occurred in April 2013. in Eastern Ghouta, a suburb of Damascus. In the aftermath of the use of shells containing poisonous Syrian, according to various sources, between 280 and 1,700 people were killed. The Syrian opposition, mostly made up of terrorist groups, as well as Western officials, have accused President Bashar al-Assad of using these weapons. However, these accusations are part of an organized media-psychological campaign that always accompanies the Special Operations of the West. The Russian military has discovered in Syria that Islamic State and Jabhat al-Nusra are developing their own chemical weapons, which Western powers have not indicated. In October 2016. in 2015, the Russian military discovered evidence of the use of chemical weapons (chlorine and white phosphorus munitions) against civilians and the Syrian army in southwestern Aleppo.
- The mass use of chemical weapons would cause a serious humanitarian catastrophe.
If the Ukrainian side, with the approval of the Western powers, resolves to the massive use of chemical weapons in the Donbass, it would cause a severe humanitarian disaster, but without a doubt the reaction of the Russian side, which would have overall long-term uncertain consequences and further make it impossible to talk about easing tensions in this conflict.
The use of chemical weapons is a serious crime against humanity and is on the list of weapons of mass destruction. The organization for the Prohibition of chemical weapons would have to take into account this very alarming and threatening information and conduct its own investigation into this case. Plans for the use of chemical weapons should be met with strong condemnation from international institutions and the public and an energetic reaction that involves taking all necessary measures to prevent the use of chemical weapons. The establishment of Indivisible collective security as a system of joint actions by states to prevent and eliminate threats to peace, suppress acts of aggression or other violations of peace, is also necessary to prevent the use of prohibited weapons in accordance with international law. The basis of the system of collective security is the principle of indivisibility of the world, which means that no power can be excluded and has the exclusive right to act outside the general agreement. Russia, China and other BRICS countries are demanding that such an agreement be established on a global level, while Western powers want to maintain their previous status when outside the framework of international institutions they have intervened in violation of international law and the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other states. Establishing a system of Indivisible collective security would neutralize to a large extent the conflict potential that leads to escalation of conflicts and the use of illicit weapons in those conflicts.
Instructions:
