Russia to initiate investigation of the use of chemical weapons in Ukraine

Photo: AP photo

Russia's Ambassador to The Hague, where the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is headquartered, Roman Kolodkin, told reporters that Russia did not exclude an opportunity to apply to the OPCW with a request to investigate possible instances of the use of chemical weapons in eastern Ukraine. However, there is not enough evidence for such a move, the official said. 

"In order to apply, one needs to obtain weighty grounds, not just (information) from the media. Should such information continue to arrive, we may put up this question. For the time being we are not putting it up," RIA Novosti quotes the official as saying.

The commander of the militia of Donetsk, Igor Strelkov, said that after the Ukrainian troops shelled the suburbs of Slavyansk, representatives of local hospitals said that some of the patients had symptoms of chlorine poisoning.

"The troops were conducting sporadiс fire on our positions and the town, from howitzers and mortars. In the village of Tselinny, a woman was killed when a mine hit her house. Many others were wounded, there is a lot of destruction. They did not even try to target our checkpoint. We have more facts to prove the use of "non-lethal" chemical weapons. Doctors say that they have more and more patients coming from the village of Semyonovka. They complain of itchy eyes, sore throat, etc. The troops use something based on chlorine. Explosions occur in the air, after which a cloud of smoke is formed. They shoot these projectiles only then when the wind is blowing in our direction," Strelkov said on June 30.