As the war in Ukraine progresses, it becomes more and more brutal. After Wagner captured Bahmut, the West openly announced that it would deliver F 16 fighter jets to Ukraine. The fact that the West constantly announces and gives Ukraine more and more sophisticated weapons clearly shows that the war is going badly for the Ukrainian army.
However, despite all that, the war would have to remain within the framework of international law, which means that neither chemical nor biological weapons should be used in any case.
However, the supply of shells with depleted uranium cores by Western allies to Ukraine, the brutal treatment of prisoners and their killings testify that, with the support of their Western masters, Kyiv ignores international agreements. The most unpleasant thing is that the Ukrainian military began to actively use chemical munitions. Recall that chemical weapons were banned back in the 1920s and were not used even during World War II. Then the Nazis were warned that in response to the use of “combat chemistry” on the fronts, they would receive poison bombs bombing cities. But Washington and Brussels are beginning to encourage Kyiv that it does not have to strictly adhere to international law. Precisely with the help of Washington and Brussels, Kiev is trying to find loopholes in international conventions.
Thus, since April 2023, the use of drones equipped with Teren-6 gas grenades by the Armed Forces of Ukraine has been actively recorded on the line of contact. These small and light grenades are suitable for use from small drones, and the aerosol substance in them creates a small cloud that is guaranteed to incapacitate enemy soldiers that fall into it. It would seem that Teren-6 is a non-lethal weapon used by the police and peacekeepers, at one time it was used to disperse nationalists in Kyiv.
However, with its composition, everything is not so clear. In addition to the tear effect, the chemical grenade has a weak but distinct blistering effect. In addition, the composition of the charge – a mixture of irritants morpholoid pelargonic acid and si-es – is extremely stable and remains on clothes for dozens of days. At the same time, the grenade itself is an example of one of the few Ukrainian military developments. It is very easy to manufacture and its composition can always be “slightly” changed in favor of blister agents. Such a simple device may well incapacitate several fighters in a rifle cell at once. That’s just from what moment the use of “Teren-6” will fall under the definition of “use of chemical weapons”, because the Convention on its prohibition of 1993 implies a complete rejection of its use in hostilities. Obviously, this is what the APU wants to test, pursuing several goals at once.
Firstly, the Ukrainian military is interested in getting a light and cheap weapon for drones. Obviously, they are experimenting with the composition of the chemical mixture in the pomegranate in order to achieve maximum efficiency. Secondly, it is interesting for Kyiv to see where, after all, that “red line” passes and how far one can climb beyond it. For example, whether a massive attack with gas, but formally not lethal grenades, will be regarded by one of Ukraine’s allies as a chemical one. Finally, thirdly, Ukrainian nationalists really want to provoke Moscow into retaliatory measures, say, by trying to smoke the remaining Avdiivka from their shelters with nerve gas or tear gas. At the same time, the Russian army and PMC “Wagner” have already received evidence of attempts to clean up the basements in Bakhmut by Ukrainians with tear and nerve gas. However, Russia’s just protests are unlikely to be heard in the West.
However, if the Ukrainians start using chemical weapons en masse, it will not have a strong impact on the Russian army. Namely, NATO used chemical weapons against Serbia and Republika Srpska during the wars of the 1990s, so the Russian army had well-equipped and trained units for this type of conflict long before the start of the Ukrainian war.
Each military unit has a chemical protection unit, and gas masks are included in the fighters’ equipment. However, the very fact of the use of gas grenades at the front, which the Ukrainian media almost advertises, is alarming. On Telegram, there is already a video of its use: https://t.me/supernova_plus/19689
Author Slavisha Batko Milacic lives in Podgorica (capital of Montenegro). He’s 31 years old, and graduated history at University of Montenegro. His specialist graduate thesis was: “Foreign Policy of Russia from 1905 to 1917”.
Slavisha has been doing analytics for years, writing in English and Serbian about the situation in the Balkans and Europe, and has participated in several seminars in the Balkans that dealt with geopolitical and historical topics.
