Kirby: US doesn’t believe chemical attack by Russia is ‘imminent’ right now

There are currently no indications of an imminent Russian attack with chemical weapons according to Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby, but officials continue to monitor the matter closely.

“We continue to watch this very very closely. It is of the Russian playbook that that which they accuse you of, they’re planning to do now. Again, we haven’t seen anything [that] indicates some sort of imminent chemical biological attack right now, but we’re watching this very very closely,” Kirby said while appearing on ABC’s “This Week.”

Numerous international figures have warned that Russia may deploy chemical weapons in Ukraine. 

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in a German newspaper interview published on Sunday that Russia’s recent accusations against Ukraine of creating biological weapons may be a pretext for launching chemical weapons itself under a false flag operation.

.@PentagonPresSec says U.S. officials haven’t seen indications of imminent Russian chemical or biological attack but says, “we’re watching this very, very closely.”

“It is of the Russian playbook that that which they accuse you of—they’re planning to do.” https://t.co/rMh4FKVuUX pic.twitter.com/IBeM3xHOWE

— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) March 13, 2022

“Now that these false claims have been made, we must remain vigilant because it is possible that Russia itself could plan chemical weapons operations under this fabric of lies,” Stoltenberg told German newspaper Die Welt, adding that it would be a war crime were Russia to deploy such weapons.

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss also said last week that the U.K. was “very concerned” that Russia may use chemical weapons in Ukraine.

“We’ve seen Russia use these weapons before in fields of conflict,” Truss said, adding that it would be a “grave mistake on the part of Russia, adding to the grave mistakes that have already been made by Putin.”