The Ukrainian newspaper The Kyiv Independent has been following soldiers for several months on Ukraine’s eastern front and in Kyiv. The soldiers testify to an increased number of Russian gas attacks, severe consequences for those affected and a lack of equipment to respond to them.
Ukraine: Use is increasing
Figures from the Ukrainian Armed Forces shows that Russia’s use of gas warfare agents and chemical weapons has increased. Since the beginning of the year, usage has tripled. In January, 229 cases were registered, in July that number was 639.
Since the Chemical Weapons Convention banned its use in war in 1993, Russia has reportedly violated it 4,000 times.
There is also information that Ukraine has asked allies for more gas masks and the soldiers who do not know how to use them correctly. At the same time, the soldiers describe that the Russian use is effective on the battlefield, the soldiers who buried themselves are forced up.
– Your natural reaction is to pull away because it feels like you’re dying, says Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, a former officer in Britain’s Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Regiment.
The trench was attacked – felt like the lungs were on fire
Soldier Ihor, who fought against the Russians near the town of Bachmut, is one of those affected by the gas attacks. For security reasons, he does not want to reveal his full name. A Russian drone dropped a gas grenade into the trench – in an attempt to force the Ukrainian soldiers into the open.
Together with three other soldiers, they made their way a little further back to another defense. He describes how he could barely breathe and how it felt like his lungs were on fire. Ihor was the only one who did not have a gas mask – he had given it away to an older soldier.
– Five more minutes in the trench and my lungs would have collapsed, says Ihor.
Instead, the other soldiers covered his mouth with wet towels, which they changed every five minutes. For several days they waited out the attack instead of seeking treatment, it was too dangerous to venture out into the open.
– I know that if I fell asleep, I wouldn’t wake up, says Ihor.
Finally, his comrades were able to carry him to medics near the town of Chasiv Yar. But the attack has left its mark, today he can’t jog more than ten meters before he loses his breath.
USA: Not isolated incidents
The use of chemical weapons on the battlefield in Ukraine has been criticized internationally as well. The US State Department wrote in a statement in May, pointing to Russia’s violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention.
“The use of chemicals is not an isolated incident and is likely driven by the desire of Russian forces to dislodge Ukrainian forces from fortified positions and achieve tactical success,” the department wrote.
Ukraine’s delegation to the OPCW, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, believes that Russia “relies heavily” on chemical weapons on the battlefield.