Ambassador Vaidotas Verba from OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine said that in the east of Ukraine there is a real chemical threat for the local population. He said this during a press conference, Ukrinform reports.
“This is one of the issues of the OSCE's competence. I did not accidentally note that chemical threats have no borders. There is no red line for the chemical threat ... For some reason, we cannot maintain our operations in certain parts of the country,” – he said.
According to Verba, the OSCE representatives signaled the problem to the negotiating parties in various formats of meetings, including the Minsk negotiations. In addition to a number of military issues, there are other issues that directly concern people living in the east of Ukraine.
“We tried to convey information through all channels to all parties that the chemical threat is truly a very serious issue,” – he added.
Meanwhile, Krzysztof Paturej, the director of the International Center for Chemical Protection and Security (ICCSS) in Warsaw, recalled that earlier the eastern region of Ukraine was the center of the chemical industry of the country. He stressed that some facilities were abandoned as a result of the armed conflict in the region.
“There are warehouses where chemical substances are simply dumped, they are not under protection. Therefore, there are real threats connected with “chemical issues” in the east of Ukraine,” – Paturej said.
All programs that were introduced by the Government of Ukraine and the OSCE should provide for the assurance that chemicals will not be used for harmful purposes, for example, during hostilities or terrorism.
