MOSCOW, February 8. /TASS/. Moscow demands that Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) member states evaluate evidence of Kiev using chemical weapons near Artyomovsk (called Bakhmut in Ukraine) and Soledar, head of the Russian delegation to the Vienna talks on military security and arms control Konstantin Gavrilov said.
"According to the Russian Defense Ministry, US-run military biological laboratories are being relocated from Ukraine to Poland and the Baltic countries, which only confirms our concerns about the provocative activities that the US and its allies carry out near Russia’s borders. We are also getting reports about Ukrainian forces using chemical weapons in combat operations near Artyomovsk and Solear, making Russian troops suffer serious burns and poisoning," the diplomat said at Wednesday’s plenary session of the OSCE Forum for Security Cooperation.
"The Russian Investigative Committee is working to establish all the circumstances of these incidents," Gavrilov noted. "We demand that OSCE member states strongly evaluate these actions in connection with the OSCE principles governing non-proliferation, which were adopted by heads of state and governments," he added.
"Be warned that offensive weapons supplies, along with attempts to incite Kiev to seize Russian territories, are dragging NATO member states into the conflict and may escalate it to an unprecedented level," Gavrilov stressed.