Russian forces are increasingly attacking Ukrainian soldiers with a suffocation grenade, according to the Ukrainian defence ministry’s information agency.

RG-Vo grenades, a form of tear gas, were used for the first time and on 81 occasions in December, Army Inform cited a weapons research centre spokesperson as saying.

It can kill a person within five minutes if launched into a room or dugout, according to the Centre for Research of Trophy and Prospective Weapons and Military Equipment of the Ukrainian General Staff.

Spokesperson Captain Andriy Rudyk told Army Inform: “This grenade contains chloroacetophenone, an asphyxiant substance prohibited by the Geneva Protocol [on chemical warfare].”

Russia has deployed chemical weapons 51 times this year, most often in the form of grenades dropped from drones, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

It said the first instance of an RG-Vo grenade being detected was on 14 December.

The research centre believed Russia was studying the reaction of the international community before expanding the use of chemical weapons further, reported Army Inform.

MEZIESBLOG cannot independently verify these reports.