Latest news with #GermanIntelligence
Daily Mail
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Russia accused of ramping up use of chemical weapons in Ukraine
Russia has been accused of ramping up its use of prohibited chemical weapons as part of its ongoing war in Ukraine - including the deployment of the WWI-era poison gas chloropicrin. The use of banned hazardous compounds by the Russian military has become 'standardised and commonplace' in Ukraine, the Netherlands' military intelligence and security services, alongside the German intelligence service, found. Russian soldiers use chloropicrin and riot control agent CS against sheltering Ukrainian soldiers to force them out into the open where they are more easily picked off, according to the findings. Dutch defence minister Ruben Brekelmans called for more sanctions against Moscow, and continued military support for Kyiv . Mr Brekelmans, who stayed on in a caretaker role after the Dutch government collapsed last month, said that he does not want to see the use of chemical weapons become normalised. Lowering the threshold for use 'is not only dangerous for Ukraine, but also for the rest of Europe and the world', he said in a statement. Russia has signed up to the Chemical Weapons Convention, which bans the use of chloropicrin and CS as weapons. The convention's watchdog, The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) has found several incidents in Ukraine involving CS but the group has not conducted a full investigation, which must be requested by the member states. The executive committee for the OPCW is holding a regular meeting next week, where it is expected to discuss the conflict in Ukraine. Russian authorities have denied using chemical weapons in the past, instead alleging that Ukraine has used the banned substances. According to Ukraine, Russia has carried out 9,000 chemical weapons attacks in the country since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022. In 2024, the US State Department said that it had recorded the use of chloropicrin against Ukrainian troops. Tear gas, also known as CS, is banned during wartime under the Chemical Weapons Convention, which both Russia and Ukraine are signatories of. However, last year Ukrainian soldiers claimed that Russian troops were regularly dropping K-51 grenades, which according to experts are typically filed with tear gas. Ihor, a commander of a Ukrainian reconnaissance team, told The Telegraph that they were getting 'one or two gas grenades dropped on them' every day. According to training documents that emerged in 2024, Ukrainian troops are now being told to stay where they are and endure the first few minutes of exposure to tear gas. While fleeing may give their position away, after the first few minutes the effect of the gas weakens. Russia on Friday said that it sees no immediate diplomatic way out of the war in Ukraine, hours after pummelling the war-torn country with its largest ever drone and missile barrage of the invasion. The hours-long bombardments sent Ukrainians scurrying for shelters across the country and came after a call between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, which ended without a breakthrough. Trump also said he had made no progress in discussions with Putin on ending more than three years of bitter fighting since the Kremlin ordered its troops into neighbouring Ukraine. The Kremlin said Friday it was 'preferable' to achieve the goals of its invasion through political and diplomatic means. 'But as long as that is not possible, we are continuing the special operation,' spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a briefing, referring to Russia's invasion. Zelensky said air alerts began echoing out across the country as the Trump-Putin call was getting under way. 'Yet again, Russia is showing it has no intention of ending the war and terror,' he said on social media. In Kyiv, concerns mounted over whether the US would continue delivering military aid, which is key to Ukraine's ability to fend off the drone and missile barrages.
CBS News
9 hours ago
- Politics
- CBS News
Russia ramps up use of banned chemical weapons in Ukraine, including WWI-era poison gas, 3 European intel services say
What we know about the death of Russia's chemical weapons head The Hague — Two Dutch intelligence agencies said on Friday that Russia is increasing its use of prohibited chemical weapons in Ukraine, including the World War I-era poison gas chloropicrin. The Netherlands' military intelligence and the security service, together with the German intelligence service, found that the use of prohibited chemical weapons by the Russian military had become "standardized and commonplace" in Ukraine. According to the findings, the Russian military uses chloropicrin and riot control agent CS against sheltering Ukrainian soldiers, who are then forced out into the open and shot. Dutch Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans called for more sanctions against Moscow and continued military support for Kyiv. Brekelmans, who stayed on in a caretaker role after the Dutch government collapsed last month, said he doesn't want to see the use of chemical weapons become normalized. He said on social media, "Drones are dropping the chemical chloropicrin on trenches, driving away and then killing Ukrainian soldiers." Brekelmans said with the use of large-scale chemical weapons, Russia was again showing "its evil face." Lowering the threshold for use "is not only dangerous for Ukraine, but also for the rest of Europe and the world," he said in a statement. Russia has signed up to the Chemical Weapons Convention, which bans the use of chloropicrin and CS as weapons. The convention's watchdog, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, or OPCW, has found several incidents in Ukraine involving CS, but the group hasn't conducted a full investigation, which must be requested by the member states. The executive committee for the OPCW is holding a regular meeting next week, where it's expected to discuss the conflict in Ukraine. Russian authorities didn't immediately comment on the findings, but they have denied using chemical weapons in the past, instead alleging that Ukraine has used the banned substances. According to Ukraine, Russia has carried out 9,000 chemical weapons attacks in the country since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022. In December, the head of the Russian military's biological and chemical weapons unit, Lt. General Igor Kirillov, was killed along with his deputy during a blast in Moscow. At the time, an informed source in the Security Service of Ukraine told CBS News, "Kirillov was a war criminal and an absolutely legitimate target, since he gave orders to use prohibited chemical weapons against the Ukrainian military." In 2024, the U.S. State Department said that it had recorded the use of chloropicrin against Ukrainian troops.
Daily Mail
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Russia is accused of ramping up its use of banned chemical weapons in Ukraine as tyrant Putin continues his onslaught against Kyiv
Russia has been accused of ramping up its use of prohibited chemical weapons as part of its ongoing war in Ukraine - including the deployment of the WWI-era poison gas chloropicrin. The use of banned hazardous compounds by the Russian military has become 'standardised and commonplace' in Ukraine, the Netherlands' military intelligence and security services, alongside the German intelligence service, found. Russian soldiers use chloropicrin and riot control agent CS against sheltering Ukrainian soldiers to force them out into the open where they are more easily picked off, according to the findings. Dutch defence minister Ruben Brekelmans called for more sanctions against Moscow, and continued military support for Kyiv. Mr Brekelmans, who stayed on in a caretaker role after the Dutch government collapsed last month, said that he does not want to see the use of chemical weapons become normalised. Lowering the threshold for use 'is not only dangerous for Ukraine, but also for the rest of Europe and the world', he said in a statement. Russia has signed up to the Chemical Weapons Convention, which bans the use of chloropicrin and CS as weapons. The convention's watchdog, The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) has found several incidents in Ukraine involving CS but the group has not conducted a full investigation, which must be requested by the member states. The executive committee for the OPCW is holding a regular meeting next week, where it is expected to discuss the conflict in Ukraine. Russian authorities have denied using chemical weapons in the past, instead alleging that Ukraine has used the banned substances. According to Ukraine, Russia has carried out 9,000 chemical weapons attacks in the country since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022. In 2024, the US State Department said that it had recorded the use of chloropicrin against Ukrainian troops. Tear gas, also known as CS, is banned during wartime under the Chemical Weapons Convention, which both Russia and Ukraine are signatories of. However, last year Ukrainian soldiers claimed that Russian troops were regularly dropping K-51 grenades, which according to experts are typically filed with tear gas. Ihor, a commander of a Ukrainian reconnaissance team, told The Telegraph that they were getting 'one or two gas grenades dropped on them' every day. According to training documents that emerged in 2024, Ukrainian troops are now being told to stay where they are and endure the first few minutes of exposure to tear gas. While fleeing may give their position away, after the first few minutes the effect of the gas weakens. Russia on Friday said that it sees no immediate diplomatic way out of the war in Ukraine, hours after pummelling the war-torn country with its largest ever drone and missile barrage of the invasion. The hours-long bombardments sent Ukrainians scurrying for shelters across the country and came after a call between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, which ended without a breakthrough. Trump also said he had made no progress in discussions with Putin on ending more than three years of bitter fighting since the Kremlin ordered its troops into neighbouring Ukraine. The Kremlin said Friday it was 'preferable' to achieve the goals of its invasion through political and diplomatic means. 'But as long as that is not possible, we are continuing the special operation,' spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a briefing, referring to Russia's invasion. Zelensky said air alerts began echoing out across the country as the Trump-Putin call was getting under way. 'Yet again, Russia is showing it has no intention of ending the war and terror,' he said on social media. In Kyiv, concerns mounted over whether the US would continue delivering military aid, which is key to Ukraine's ability to fend off the drone and missile barrages. The US announced this week it was reducing some of its aid deliveries. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said this was a clear signal that the 27-nation European Union needed to 'step up'. Ukraine has also ramped up its retaliatory strikes in Russia, where a woman was killed by a Ukrainian drone attack overnight, the acting governor of the Rostov region said. Talks, spearheaded by the United States to secure a ceasefire, have stalled.
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Dutch intelligence services say Russia has stepped up use of banned chemical weapons in Ukraine
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Two Dutch intelligence agencies said on Friday that Russia is increasing its use of prohibited chemical weapons in Ukraine, including the World War I-era poison gas chloropicrin. The Netherlands' military intelligence and the security service, together with the German intelligence service, found that the use of prohibited chemical weapons by the Russian military had become 'standardized and commonplace' in Ukraine. According to the findings, the Russian military uses chloropicrin and riot control agent CS against sheltering Ukrainian soldiers, who are then forced out into the open and shot. Dutch Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans called for more sanctions against Moscow, and continued military support for Kyiv. Brekelmans, who stayed on in a caretaker role after the Dutch government collapsed last month, said that he doesn't want to see the use of chemical weapons become normalized. Lowering the threshold for use 'is not only dangerous for Ukraine, but also for the rest of Europe and the world,' he said in a statement. Russia has signed up to the Chemical Weapons Convention, which bans the use of chloropicrin and CS as weapons. The convention's watchdog, The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, or OPCW, has found several incidents in Ukraine involving CS, but the group hasn't conducted a full investigation, which must be requested by the member states. The executive committee for the OPCW is holding a regular meeting next week, where it's expected to discuss the conflict in Ukraine. Russian authorities didn't immediately comment on the findings, but they have denied using chemical weapons in the past, instead alleging that Ukraine has used the banned substances. According to Ukraine, Russia has carried out 9,000 chemical weapons attacks in the country since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022. In 2024, the U.S. State Department said that it had recorded the use of chloropicrin against Ukrainian troops. ___ Follow the AP's coverage of the war at
Al Arabiya
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Dutch intelligence services say Russia has stepped up use of banned chemical weapons in Ukraine
Two Dutch intelligence agencies said on Friday that Russia is increasing its use of prohibited chemical weapons in Ukraine, including the World War I–era poison gas chloropicrin. The Netherlands military intelligence and the security service, together with the German intelligence service, found that the use of prohibited chemical weapons by the Russian military had become standardized and commonplace in Ukraine. According to the findings, the Russian military uses chloropicrin and riot control agent CS against sheltering Ukrainian soldiers, who are then forced out into the open and shot. Dutch Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans called for more sanctions against Moscow and continued military support for Kyiv. Brekelmans, who stayed on in a caretaker role after the Dutch government collapsed last month, said that he doesn't want to see the use of chemical weapons become normalized. 'Lowering the threshold for use is not only dangerous for Ukraine but also for the rest of Europe and the world,' he said in a statement. Russia has signed the Chemical Weapons Convention, which bans the use of chloropicrin and CS as weapons. The convention's watchdog, The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, or OPCW, has found several incidents in Ukraine involving CS, but the group hasn't conducted a full investigation, which must be requested by the member states. The executive committee for the OPCW is holding a regular meeting next week where it's expected to discuss the conflict in Ukraine. Russian authorities didn't immediately comment on the findings, but they have denied using chemical weapons in the past, instead alleging that Ukraine has used the banned substances. According to Ukraine, Russia has carried out 9,000 chemical weapons attacks in the country since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022. In 2024, the US State Department said that it had recorded the use of chloropicrin against Ukrainian troops.
