Sarin which InformNapalm says could be used by the Russians against Ukrainian resistance is a paralyzing nerve agent classified as a chemical weapon of mass destruction. It’s a poison 26 times deadlier than cyanide. The actual quantity of the chemical warfare agent available in Russian arsenals is not known, as the gas was officially banned from Moscow with its accession to the 1972 Biological Weapons Convention and the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention. However, according to the US and NATO, Russia has continued to carry out weapons programs, such as missile warheads, which include sarin. In fact, the Russian Federation has already been accused of using chemical weapons in Syria, where it is believed to have hit civilians opposed to Bashar alAssad’s regime in at least three hundred attacks.
Exposure to sarin gas is fatal, even at very low concentrations, and death can occur within ten minutes of direct inhalation from asphyxiation from respiratory paralysis unless antidotes are administered quickly. People who ingest a nonlethal dose but do not receive prompt medical attention can experience permanent neurological damage. For this reason, according to InformNapalm, the Russian soldiers were given vials of atropine, which along with pralidoxime is the best antidote to sarin.