Chloropicrin: US accuses Russia of using ‘chemical weapon’ in Ukraine War

7 May 2024

Context

The U.S. State Department in its factsheet accused Russia of having used  chemical weapons against Ukrainian forces which is a gross violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention.

US accuses Russia of using ‘chemical weapon’ in Ukraine

  • Russia used chemical agent chloropicrin in Ukraine along with the “riot control agents (tear gas) as a method of warfare in Ukraine.
  • Sanctions: USA announced fresh sanctions against Moscow’s military and industrial capabilities which targets nearly 300 entities in Russia, China, and other countries

What is Chloropicrin?

Chloropicrin

  • About: Chloropicrin is a C-nitro compound that is nitromethane in which all three hydrogens are replaced by chlorines.
    • It is a synthetic C-nitro, one-carbon, and organochlorine compound that is a strong lachrymator (tears-inducing agent,  popular examples: pepper spray, and bromoacetone).
  • Common names: Nitrochloroform, Dolochlor,Picfume
  • Appearance: Colorless to faintly yellow oily liquid.
  • Composed of: It involves a chemical reaction between sodium hypochlorite ( bleach) and nitromethane (a common industrial solvent).
    • It can also be made by combining chloroform with nitric acid, which yields chloropicrin and water.

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  • Application: 
    • Agriculture: It  is used in agriculture as a soil fumigant particularly for strawberry crops.
    • Antimicrobial agent: It is employed  as a herbicide and nematicide and has a role as a fumigant insecticide and an antifungal agrochemical. 
    • Chemical warfare agent: Chloropicrin is an irritant with characteristics of a tear gas having an intensely irritating odor, thus used as a riot control agent.
  • As a weapon of warfare: It was first used as a poison gas in the First World War, by both the Allied and the Central Powers and was stockpiled during World War II. 
    • It induces vomiting, which prompts soldiers to remove their masks, when they would inhale more of the gas, or other gaseous agents dispersed in the air.
  • Exposure: Chloropicrin can be absorbed systemically through inhalation, ingestion, and the skin. It is a severe irritant, and can cause immediate, severe inflammation of the eyes, nose and throat, and significant injuries to the upper and lower respiratory tract.
    • It  is also known to be highly toxic and carcinogenic.

Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC)

  • Entered into force: On 29 April 1997 
  • About: It is the world’s first multilateral disarmament agreement to provide for the elimination of an entire category of weapons of mass destruction within a fixed time frame. 
  • Membership:  193 States Parties to the Convention 
  • Implementing Organ: The Convention led to the birth of an international chemical weapons disarmament regime headed by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
  • Mandate:  
    • To end the development, production, stockpiling, transfer and use of chemical weapons
    • To prevent their re-emergence
    • To  ensure the elimination of existing stocks of such weapons
    • To make the world safe from the threat of chemical warfare.
  • Recognition: The 2013 Nobel Prize for Peace was awarded to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons  for its extensive efforts to eliminate chemical weapons.

 

Also Read: North Korea’s Biological Weapons Programme

 

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