The United States is planning a provocation in Ukraine using toxic chemicals, the Russian defense ministry said on Tuesday.
The ministry cited former US ambassador to Russia John Sullivan as saying that "Russian troops plan to use chemical weapons in the special military operation area."
"We regard this information as the intention of the United States and their accomplices to carry out a provocation in Ukraine using toxic chemicals," Igor Kirillov, chief of the radiation, chemical and biological defense troops of Russia's armed forces said during a briefing.
He said that Russia "will identify and punish the true culprits."
Meanwhile, the commander of Ukrainian ground forces, Colonel general Oleksandr Syrskyi, said on Tuesday that the situation around the besieged town of Bakhmut is "extremely tense."
"Despite significant losses, the enemy threw in the most prepared assault units of Wagner, who are trying to break through the defenses of our troops and surround the city," Syrskyi was quoted as saying on the Ukraine's Media Military Center Telegram messaging platform.
Russia is trying to cut the Ukrainian defenders' supply lines to the city and force them to surrender or withdraw. That would give Russia its first major prize in more than half a year and open the way to the capture of the last remaining urban centers in the Donetsk region.
"The enemy is constantly destroying everything that can be used to protect our positions for fortification and defence. Our soldiers defending the area around Bakhmut are true heroes," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday.
