U.S. President Joe Biden says the threat of Russia using chemical weapons against Ukraine was "real" as NATO head Jens Stoltenberg warned of "far-reaching consequences" if Moscow were to use armaments.
“I think it’s a real threat,” Biden said on March 23 as he left for Europe, where he will meet with NATO, Group of Seven, and European Union allies to discuss Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which is in its fourth week amid fierce resistance by Ukrainian soldiers and civilians.
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Several Western officials, including Stoltenberg, have repeatedly warned that Russia might use chemical weapons in Ukraine and that such a move would be a war crime.
"Any use of chemical weapons would totally change the nature of the conflict, it would be a blatant violation of international law, and would have far-reaching consequences," Stoltenberg said in Brussels on March 23.
Earlier this month, Russia requested a meeting of the 15-member UN Security Council to address Moscow's allegations of U.S. “biological activities” in Ukraine -- a charge made without any evidence and denied by both Washington and Kyiv.
The U.S. envoy to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said Washington was "deeply concerned" that Russia likely called the session as a "false flag effort" aimed at laying the groundwork for its own use of biological or chemical weapons in Ukraine.
"Russia has a track record of falsely accusing other countries of the very violations that Russia itself is perpetrating,” Thomas-Greenfield said on March 11.
"We have serious concerns that Russia may be planning to use chemical or biological agents against the Ukrainian people,” Thomas-Greenfield said.