OPCW Investigation Confirms Russia’s Likely Use of Chemical Weapons Against Ukraine

Russia’s consistent denials that its military forces have deployed illegal chemical weapons in Ukraine were dealt a serious blow on November 18, when the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) announced that it had recently conducted a Technical Assistance Visit to Ukraine and established evidence of chemical weapons use. While the OPCW stopped short of attributing responsibility to Russia, a growing body of evidence points to numerous Russian chemical weapon attacks against Ukrainian front-line troops in violation of the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention, to which Moscow is a party.

The findings of the OPCW — composed of 193 member states that have assented to the Chemical Weapons Convention — are an important first step toward establishing independent confirmation of Russia’s chemical weapons use against Ukraine and paving the way for member states to apply penalties against President Vladimir Putin’s regime.

What the OPCW Found

Following a request from Ukraine, the OPCW investigated an alleged September 20 chemical weapon attack against Ukrainian troops in the Dnipropetrovsk region. A drone allegedly dropped grenades in Ukrainian trenches containing a substance that caused physical reactions among troops, including excessive salivation, nasal congestion, and burning and itching sensations.

The OPCW team “collected documentation and digital files, testimonies from first-hand witnesses, and received three samples collected by Ukraine: a shell of grenade and two soil samples collected from a trench.” The team also collected and took photographs and video of the grenades. After corroborating an appropriate chain of custody for the samples, the team sent them to two separate OPCW-designated laboratories for independent analysis, a process observed by Ukrainian OPCW representatives.

The laboratories independently confirmed “that the grenade and soil samples collected from the trench contain the riot control agent 2-Chlorobenzylidenemalononitrile, known as CS.” The OPCW underscored that under the terms of the Chemical Weapons Convention, “the use of riot control agents as a method of warfare is prohibited.”    

International Allegations and Russian Denials

The OPCW’s report bolsters the ongoing showdown between Ukraine and its allies, including the United States and European countries, and Russia and its voting coalition. This confrontation is sure to intensify when the OPCW’s member states meet in The Hague from November 25 to 29.

For more than a year, Ukraine, the United States, United Kingdom, multiple other European countries, the European Union, Canada, and Japan have alleged that Moscow is using chemical weapons to incapacitate Ukrainian troops. Most allegations relate to Russia’s use of riot control agents but also include chloropicrin, a World War I-era chemical that causes choking and is also banned by the Chemical Weapons Convention.

Ukraine claims to have tracked at least 4,600 separate instances of Russian chemical weapons use since Russia’s invasion in February 2022, and relevant authorities assert that such attacks have been increasing.

Moscow denies using chemical weapons to attack Ukraine, stating most recently in November 12 correspondence to the OPCW that the investigation confirms only that Ukraine used riot control agents against Russia. Related Kremlin misinformation and disinformation campaigns are likely to intensify in the wake of the OPCW report.

CSP Must Sideline Russia From Key Leadership Post

At their forthcoming meeting in The Hague, known formally as the Conference of States Parties (CSP) — member states will have an important opportunity to further sideline Russia from a key OPCW leadership position and further reduce Moscow’s malign influence in the organization.

At their meeting in December 2023, member states voted for the first time in the OPCW’s history to sideline Russia from holding a seat on the body’s Executive Council, electing Ukraine, Poland, and Lithuania to openings allocated to Eastern Europe for the May 2024-May 2026 term. The 2024 gathering will consider three candidates — Russia, the Czech Republic, and North Macedonia — for two available seats and a two-year term that runs from May 2025 to May 2027.

Member states should vote to sideline Moscow from the Executive Council once more and make clear that additional consequences will follow in light of the OPCW’s damning findings. In addition, the United States and its allies should prepare new sanctions penalties against Russia’s ongoing chemical weapons program.

Andrea Stricker is a research fellow and deputy director of the Nonproliferation and Biodefense Program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD). For more analysis from the author and FDD, please subscribe HERE. Follow Andrea on X @StrickerNonpro. Follow FDD on X @FDD. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focused on national security and foreign policy.