Russia's Embassy in Washington Urges US to Destroy Its Stockpiles of Chemical Weapons

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Russian embassy in Washington on Friday denied accusations of Moscow's alleged plans to use chemical weapons in Ukraine and urged the United States to destroy its stockpiles of chemical weapons as it was enshrined in the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC).

"Local media continue repeating the [American] administration's odious accusations that our country is allegedly violating the Chemical Weapons Convention. Journalists, following the officials, also keep asserting without evidence about our remaining arsenals of chemical weapons and plans to use them in Ukraine", the embassy said on Telegram.

The mission underscored that Russia has completely destroyed its stockpiles of chemical weapons in 2017, and recalled that this fact was confirmed by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

"The US, not Russia, is the only member country to the Chemical Weapons Convention that has yet to get rid of its stockpiles of chemical warfare agents. It is known for a fact that Washington has the technical capacity and financial resources to accelerate chemical demilitarisation," the embassy added.

The mission urged the American society to wonder why Washington is delaying the elimination of its stockpiles of chemical weapons, unlike other countries.

The CWC went into effect in 1997. As of 2021, 193 countries have become members of the convention. The CWC prohibited the use, development, production, stockpiling, and transfer of chemical weapons and agents to other countries. The OPCW was established along with the CWC to implement and oversee the convention.