UK slaps sanctions on Russia’s chemical weapons chief

The United Kingdom accused Russia of deploying chemical weapons in its war on Ukraine, and is freezing the assets of agencies and enforcing travel bans on the individuals it says are responsible, the government said Tuesday.
The measures are targeted at the leadership of Russia’s radiological chemical and biological defense program, including its head Igor Kirillov, along with two labs run by Russia’s Defense Ministry.
In a statement, the U.K.’s Defense Secretary John Healey pointed to “horrific chemical attacks in Ukraine,” with the government claiming that such attacks mark a “flagrant violation” of the Chemical Weapons Convention which dates back to the 1990s and compels signatory states to ban such warfare.
“We will not allow such blatant violations of the Chemical Weapons Convention and rules-based international order to go unpunished,” said Healey.
Since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, the United States has accused Moscow of deploying the banned tear gas-like substance chloropicrin.
Earlier this month, the U.K. also sanctioned 16 members of a Russian cyber-crime group dubbed Evil Corp.
As part of efforts to ramp up military support for Ukraine, this weekend Prime Minister Keir Starmer will travel to Germany to meet U.S. President Joe Biden and European leaders for talks on the conflict.