The United Kingdom accused Russia of deploying chemical weapons in its war on Ukraine, and is freezing the assets of agencies and enforcing travel bans on the individuals it says are responsible, the government said Tuesday.
The measures are targeted at the leadership of Russia’s radiological chemical and biological defense program, including its head Igor Kirillov, along with two labs run by Russia’s Defense Ministry.
In a statement, the U.K.’s Defense Secretary John Healey pointed to “horrific chemical attacks in Ukraine,” with the government claiming that such attacks mark a “flagrant violation” of the Chemical Weapons Convention which dates back to the 1990s and compels signatory states to ban such warfare.
"We will not allow such blatant violations of the Chemical Weapons Convention and rules-based international order to go unpunished," said Healey.