The Washington Post has not been able to independently verify reports of white phosphorus use in Ukraine. Although the chemical is notorious for the extreme damage it can cause, other incendiary weapons and chemicals used by the military for lighting have historically been confused with white phosphorus.
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Asked by reporters about Zelenskyy’s comments on Friday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia had “never violated international conventions.”
White phosphorus is an industrial chemical with oxidizing properties and can be used in conflict for a variety of reasons. When a munition containing the substance explodes, the chemical it contains creates a thick white cloud. Many countries, including the United States, have used the substance to create smoke screens during conflicts or to give signals to troops.
But the substance itself can cause serious harm, including death, to people. White phosphorus burns at an extremely high temperature of 800 degrees Celsius and above, so the substance can burn to the bone on contact with human flesh. Because it reacts to oxygen, it can even reignite when bandages are removed.
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The chemical can also enter the bloodstream when in prolonged contact with meat, poisoning organs such as the kidneys, liver, and heart, and possibly causing multiple organ failures. The smoke released from white phosphorus can also damage the respiratory tract.
However, because white phosphorus has some legitimate uses, it occupies a complicated place in international humanitarian law. It is not considered a chemical weapon and is not per se prohibited under international humanitarian law.
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The Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, signed by Russia and 112 other countries, bans the use of incendiary weapons in civilian settings. However, since white phosphorus’ primary purpose is to produce smoke, some legal scholars argue that it should not be considered an incendiary weapon.
Groups like Human Rights Watch have urged governments to rewrite Protocol III of the convention, which focuses on incendiary weapons, to more clearly include white phosphorus and other modern weapons. Indiscriminate attacks on civilian areas are considered war crimes under international humanitarian law, regardless of the weapon used.
Russian officials have also accused Ukraine of using white phosphorus to fight Moscow-backed separatists after 2014, although Ukraine denied using firebombs and human rights groups said they had found no evidence to support the claims. In a 2015 letter to Human Rights Watch, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia agrees that “the improper use of such weapons as incendiary weapons is causing significant humanitarian harm.”