NATO chief says Russia could use chemical weapons in Ukraine

That’s according to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, who spoke at a press conference in Brussels on Tuesday ahead of the extraordinary defense ministerial, which is to take place on March 16, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"For months, we have exposed Russia’s long list of lies. They claimed they did not plan to invade Ukraine. But they did. They claimed they were withdrawing their troops. But they sent in even more. They claim to be protecting civilians. But they are killing civilians. Now they are making absurd claims about biological labs and chemical weapons in Ukraine. This is just another lie. And we are concerned that Moscow could stage a false flag operation, possibly including chemical weapons," the NATO chief said.

He noted that any use of chemical weapons by Russia would be a violation of international law, the Convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons that Russia has signed off. At the same time, Russia has already used chemical agents to attack and assassinate political opponents, and has supported the Syrian regime, which has repeatedly used chemical weapons against its own people.

Any use of chemical weapons is completely unacceptable, Stoltenberg said, adding that it is very important that Russia understands this. He added that NATO remains highly vigilant about such a possibility and Russia's preparation of preconditions for running and justifying a covert operation with the possible use of chemical weapons.

On February 24, 2022, Russian President Putin unleashed an unprovoked war against Ukraine. Russian troops have been destroying Ukrainian cities and towns, firing MLR systems, carrying out air strikes, and missile attacks.