On Saturday, Russia’s military ministry accused Ukraine of poisoning several of its personnel in late July in the Russian-controlled section of Ukraine’s southeastern region of Zaporizhzhia.
In response, an interior ministry adviser in Ukraine stated that the suspected poisoning might have been caused by Russian personnel consuming expired tinned meat.
On July 31, a number of Russian personnel were rushed to a military hospital with symptoms of acute poisoning, according to the Russian defense ministry. According to the report, tests revealed a dangerous chemical, botulinum toxin type B, in their systems.
Russia is developing supporting evidence with the findings of all analyses on the reality of chemical terrorism sanctioned by the (Ukrainian President Volodymyr) Zelenskiy administration, the ministry said in a statement.
It did not indicate how many personnel had been injured or what their current status was. The supporting evidence was not specified.
Botulinum toxin type B is a neurotoxin that may induce botulism when consumed in previously tainted food, but it also has medicinal use.
The Ukrainian military ministry did not react quickly to a request for comment from Reuters, but interior ministry advisor Anton Gerashchenko addressed the Russian accusation on the Telegram messaging app.
The department (Russian military ministry) does not specify if the poisoning was caused by expired canned meat, which contains botulinum toxin. The invading soldiers have been complaining about overdue rations since the first days of the invasion of Ukraine, he claimed.
The Russian military ministry announced an extra probe into the illness of Volodymyr Saldo, the Russian-installed administration in Ukraine’s seized Kherson area.
Saldo, a former mayor of Kherson who was selected to lead the province of the same name after Russian soldiers took it over in early March, fell sick in early August.
Russia claims its special military operation, which began on February 24, aims to demilitarize Ukraine and safeguard Russian speakers on what President Vladimir Putin refers to as ancient Russian soil.
Ukraine and Western nations see it as an unprovoked conquest war aiming at eradicating Ukraine’s national character.
(Reuters contributed reporting, and Timothy Heritage edited the piece.)
About Author
