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View all search resultsReckless use of chemical weapons cannot go unchallenged
The use of such weapons undermines the nonproliferation regime that the UN and international forums have worked tirelessly to uphold.
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The hacking equipment that four Russian intelligence officers used for a cyber attack on the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague is seen in this file photo. (AFP/-)
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even years ago, in the quiet town of Amesbury, a British mother, Dawn Sturgess, lost her life to a weapon that should never have existed outside a battlefield. Earlier this month, the United Kingdom government’s independent inquiry into the death confirmed what we have long known: Russia’s use of a military-grade nerve agent on UK soil was not an accident, it was a deliberate act of aggression.
The inquiry’s findings are unequivocal. Russia violated the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) by secretly stockpiling the Novichok nerve agent.
Officers from the Russian Intelligence Agency (GRU) attempted to assassinate a former GRU officer, Sergei Skripal, in Salisbury, a town close to Amesbury, an operation authorized at the highest level of the Kremlin. The same Novichok was later discarded recklessly, killing Dawn Sturgess and endangering countless lives.
All those involved bear moral responsibility for this tragedy.
This is not just about one life lost. It is about a state that treats international law as optional, and human life as expendable. Russia’s actions in Salisbury and Amesbury were a direct attack on international norms. And today, Moscow continues its campaign of destabilization: from cyberattacks and covert operations across Europe to its brutal war in Ukraine.
The UK has responded by sanctioning the GRU in its entirety, along with officers responsible for cyber operations and hostile acts. But sanctions alone are not enough. The international community must recognize that Russia’s behavior is not an isolated incident, it is part of a pattern that threatens global security. Chemical weapons do not respect borders.
The UK’s actions are not due to a lack of friendship or respect for the Russian people, or for Russia as a country. To the contrary, as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, Russia is an important actor on the global stage. Which therefore comes with great responsibility to behave as a responsible state, a responsibility the Kremlin has abandoned.
