European Union reminded Russia of inadmissibility of use of chemical weapons: "This is absolutely unacceptable. Perpetrators will be held accountable."
This was stated by European Commission spokeswoman Nabila Massrali at a briefing in Brussels, as reported by Censor.NET with reference to Ukrinform.
"We have seen press reports about the possible use of chemicals by the Russian armed forces in Mariupol and that Ukrainian servicemen had symptoms of chemical poisoning. We are closely monitoring this situation," the spokeswoman said.
She recalled that the use of chemical weapons, including the use of toxic substances as weapons, is a violation of the Convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, to which Russia is a party. It is also a war crime and a gross violation of international humanitarian law, which exacerbates the suffering of the civilian population.
"This is completely unacceptable and poses a security threat to all of us. Those responsible for using chemicals as weapons will be held accountable," Massrali said.
She noted that this is not the first time the world has received alarming signals about the illegal use of chemical weapons by Russian security forces.
