All language subtitles for Global.Eye.S2025E13.1080p.iP.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-HiNGS_track3_[eng]

Hello and welcome to Global Eye,

a programme that brings you
reporting and investigations

from around the globe,

made by teams from across
the BBC World Service.

I'm Liza Fokht, the BBC Russian
correspondent here in Berlin,

a city that's now a front line
in Europe's struggle

against Russian aggression
and interference.

German officials say there's been
an escalation in Russian spying

and sabotage, and Germany's top
operational commander has warned

Moscow now has the capacity
for a limited attack

against Nato territory.

I'll be examining Russia's
shadow war against the West

and the very real threat that poses.

Later in the programme,
as countries across Europe debate

the reintroduction of
military conscription,

we'll hear from the women
preparing for the front line.

Now, we're going to take you
to the crossroads

where Europe meets Asia -
to Georgia.

Since emerging from
the collapsing Soviet Union

as an independent state in 1991,

Georgia is once again the arena
of conflicting interests.

Last autumn, thousands of protesters
took to the streets of the capital,

Tbilisi, to protest at what they
saw as the government's failure

to advance talks to join
the European Union.

Now, a BBC Eye investigation
has uncovered shocking evidence

suggesting that the government used
a World War I era chemical weapon

against its own citizens
during those demonstrations.

Here's their report.

It's November 2024
and protesters are being met

by thousands of riot police...

..backed up by five-tonne
water cannons.

For a full week,
the cannons keep coming,

up to eight times a night.

SCREAMING

Gela Khasaia, a political activist,

has been at the forefront of many
anti-government protests for years.

But this time, when faced
with the water cannons,

he quickly realises there's
something different about them.

Many demonstrators, like Gela,

start experiencing
worrying symptoms - vomiting,

shortness of breath,
skin irritation.

Many are left wondering
what was being sprayed on them.

And there's mounting pressure
on the authorities to release

details of what is
in the water cannons.

After being exposed
to the water cannons himself,

paediatrician and activist
Konstantine Chakhunashvili has begun

a medical investigation
to see if any symptoms

have lasted longer than a month.

The study involves nearly
350 protesters exposed to tear gas

and the unknown chemical
in the water cannons.

It's difficult to separate
the effects of these two measures,

but 40% say they experienced
skin irritation like Gela,

and that wasn't all.

Two in three who had cough.

One in two had shortness of breath.

High blood pressure
was identified in 283 people.

When someone comes up to you
and tells you

that they have some type
of symptoms,

that's an anecdotal evidence, right?

So we were trying to collect
actual data that can be quantified,

and we could see what type
of symptoms are there.

SIREN WAILS

EXPLOSION

DISTANT SCREAMING

Tamar Oniani
runs the Human Rights Abuse Unit

at the Georgian Young
Lawyers Association.

She and her team have been
documenting allegations of

an unknown chemical
used at the protests.

The information that
there could have been some

sort of a mixture of the unknown
chemical irritants with the water

came from the early days
of the protest.

They've gathered testimonies
from over 100 protesters.

Their evidence suggests that the
unknown chemical was being deployed

throughout the first week
of the protests.

There are thousands of people
who were targeted by

the chemical irritant, unknown
chemical irritant to public.

From the outset,
Tamar's organisation requests

that the government releases
the name of the chemicals.

The medical community, too,

is alarmed and, at the same time,
writes a petition,

demanding to be told
what is being used.

No-one is getting answers.

My role is to
investigate allegations

of torture and other ill treatment,
wherever they may occur.

Dr Alice Edwards has been closely
examining the situation in Georgia.

This is not the military.

This is in a civilian setting
where ordinary people

are taking to the streets,

and the state should be entirely
transparent about whether they are

using water cannons infused
with different chemicals,

as well as what those chemicals are.

And that's not just
for a broader democratic

and transparency
and legality reason,

but it also allows individuals

to take the decision about
their own health

and whether they're going to be
in harm's way on the day.

There's no explicit
international law

to ban the use of chemicals
in water cannons,

but it's not recommended. If used,

the effects would have
to be temporary.

Protests have been ongoing
for eight months...

..and Konstantine
has just finished his study on

the health impacts of exposure

to chemicals used
in that first week.

His suspicions are confirmed.

Crucially, there have been some
long-term effects beyond 30 days

for nearly half of the participants
in the study.

In some cases,

Konstantine notices changes
in the heart and lungs, too.

We also identified that there was,
uh,

enlarged T-waves,
which might be due to hypoxia,

which means that heart
is receiving lack of oxygen,

and changes
in the right atrium.

We also identified
that in long-term effects,

some people had vomiting, nausea
and shortness of breath as well.

Konstantine's study
has been accepted

for publication in an international
academic journal,

but it hasn't identified the precise

chemical compounds used

in the water cannons.

The authorities have always referred
to it only as "gas"

or "other special measures".

But we can reveal
for the first time,

with the help of
a former police insider,

the name and make-up
of the chemicals

that we believe were used against
the protesters.

Lasha Shergelashvili knows the
equipment used by the riot police

better than most.

He worked for the riot police
for more than 20 years

and served as Head of Weaponry
until 2022.

He's been following events closely.

He says that some of
the water cannons used on

the protestors were purchased
in 2009.

At that time, he says,
he was asked to test

a chemical mixture
for the water cannons,

which then turned out to be
ten times stronger

than regular tear gas.

Lasha says he warned against
the use of these chemicals

while he was in his post,
but his advice was ignored.

He also says he stayed
in contact with former colleagues,

who confirm that the same chemicals
were still being used

in the protests of 2024.

The BBC spoke to another
former high-ranking officer,

who also said the riot police
continued

to use the same chemicals
after Lasha left.

The chemical numbers
don't tell you everything.

So we asked
Professor Christopher Holstege

to help us understand what they are.

He's a world-leading expert
in toxicology and chemical weapons.

The first chemical, a liquid,
is easily identified.

UN 1710 is trichloroethylene,
or TCE.

It's a solvent that helps

other chemicals dissolve in water.

So trichloroethylene is...

It is certainly not a chemical

that I want thrown out
to the masses during protests.

Identifying the second compound,
the powder, is a tougher challenge.

UN 3439 is a whole class
of chemicals.

But after examining our evidence,
Konstantine's medical study,

witness statements
and human rights reports,

Professor Holstege and his colleague

Dr Sandra Nixon
think they've narrowed it down.

Camite, or CA,

was first used as
a chemical weapon

by French forces against
the Germans

at the end of World War I.

It was then briefly used

by American police
as a riot-control agent,

but soon abandoned
and replaced with safer options.

Camite is markedly irritating,

persistent with its irritation,

potential for causing more problems

with your lungs, coughing,

for example, potentially pneumonias.

Not clear even
if you drink some of this

what kind of symptoms
you're going to have,

gastrointestinal,
including vomiting.

I think the question then comes,
why would you utilise it?

And part of it is the persistence.

It would keep people away
for a long time.

They would have to go to
the hospital.

They would have to leave the area.

If that is indeed the case,

that this chemical
has been brought back,

that is actually
exceedingly dangerous.

We showed our findings

to the UN's
Special Rapporteur on Torture.

The important point
at international law

is that any effect
should be temporary.

So longer-term problems,

such as long-term respiratory issues
or related to heart conditions,

all of those cases
should be investigated,

including under the rubric
of torture or other ill-treatment.

I would describe
the water cannons infused with

different toxins
as entirely unnecessary.

Given that it is poorly
regulated internationally,

it does lead me to consider it
as an experimental weapon,

and populations should never
be subjected to experiments.

It's absolutely in violation
of human rights law.

For a year now, night after night,
the streets

of Tbilisi have been blocked
by protesters.

And almost every evening,
Gela has been among them.

But to many, it seems the country
is slipping into authoritarian rule.

Germany and Russia have
a fascinating and complex history,

tied together through cycles
of cooperation and conflict.

After World War II,
the Soviet Union occupied

East Germany for more than 40 years.

And it's here that the Berlin Wall,

dividing the city in two,
once stood.

On this side of the wall,

the Soviet-run
German Democratic Republic,

or GDR, became an outpost
of Moscow's influence,

with Soviet spies operating
in plain sight.

Even though the Berlin Wall has
been gone for many years, the divide

between East and West
is still very much alive.

People in the two parts of Germany
often disagree with each other,

including on Russia
and the war in Ukraine.

It was 100 miles south of here,

in an East German city of Dresden,
in the late 1980s,

that a young KGB agent would spend

five years honing his spycraft
in his first foreign posting.

Vladimir Putin's schooling
in the former GDR

underscores Russia's long-standing
reliance on espionage.

And today, Moscow's deploying
even more sophisticated tactics.

Germany has ramped up
counterintelligence operations

after repeated warnings from NATO
that Moscow is using hybrid tactics,

cyber warfare, propaganda
and covert operatives

to destabilise European democracies.

A critical part
of Moscow's arsenal is

the deployment of drones
to target critical infrastructure,

both from land and sea.

In October, Munich Airport

was forced
to suspend operations twice

in 24 hours
after unidentified drone sightings.

And authorities
in Belgium and Denmark

have also reported mysterious
drone flights into their airspace,

believed to have come from ships.

EU member states
are deeply concerned, with

the European Commission warning of

an escalation
of tactics across Europe.

You're not talking about front line
countries any more.

You're not talking about
eastern flank countries any more.

You're really talking about
the European Union as a whole.

Germany has probably felt the impact
of Russia's invasion

of Ukraine more than
almost any other country.

A record number of Ukrainian
refugees fleeing the war came here.

More than a million
now live in Germany,

and tens of thousands have settled
here in Berlin.

No war! No Putin!

Over the past four years,
hundreds of anti-war Russians

have also moved in
as their neighbours -

people who left for Europe

because they feared persecution
at home.

And as the Kremlin stepped up
its crackdown on the opposition

and independent journalism,

Berlin turned into a home for many
who could no longer stay in Russia.

The presence
of anti-war Russians here

in Berlin is a reminder
that Germany isn't just

a political battleground.
It's become a refuge

for those resisting
Putin's stranglehold on power.

And there are high-stakes diplomatic
strategies being played out.

Berlin's Bridge of Spies
became famous during

the Cold War as the location

for prisoner swaps
between East and West.

And in August 2024,

Germany participated
in the biggest prisoner exchange

since the Cold War as part
of a complex swap between Russia,

the US and other Western nations.

Moscow's main prize was the release

of Vadim Krasikov, a colonel
in Russia's secret service

sentenced to life in Germany

for killing a Chechen dissident
in a Berlin park.

His release was met with controversy
and debate here.

That was a difficult choice

for the decision-makers
in Germany's government,

reflecting the broader debate over

the country's role
in European security.

Germany's new Chancellor,
Friedrich Merz,

has made that role clear.

He wants the German army
to become the strongest in Europe.

His ambitious spending plans

were approved by
a parliamentary majority,

but not everyone supports his boost
to the defence budget.

Opposition includes the far-left
Linke party and the far-right AfD.

Merz has pledged
to do whatever it takes

to protect freedom and peace.

But like other European leaders,

he will continue
to face challenging decisions

about how best to do that

as Russia intensifies its shadow war
against the West.

Now here's some of
the other great content

from the BBC World Service
that you can find this week.

After the shocking abduction

of more than 300 schoolchildren
in Nigeria,

the BBC News Africa team were

the first international media
to gain rare

and exclusive access to Papiri,

the village from
where they were taken.

You can read more about how

the community's coping
on our website.

And the country of Haiti
has been ravaged

by conflict and natural disasters
in recent years.

Shut it down! Shut it
down!

As a result, since 2010, hundreds of
thousands of its citizens have

been given special protected status
to live in the US,

but it's due to be removed soon
as part of President Donald Trump's

sweeping changes
to immigration policies.

Nawal Al-Maghafi has been to meet

a family in Florida
who risk being split up.

You can watch her report
on the BBC News YouTube channel.

In recent months, Germany has been
locked in a heated debate

about bringing back
compulsory military service.

In 2011, believing in a peaceful
future in the post-Cold War era,

the country decided
to end conscription.

Now, with the war in Ukraine
and uncertainty inside Nato,

Germany is trying
to rebuild its armed forces,

all with the aim of
increasing troop numbers

and creating Europe's
strongest army.

For now, mandatory military service
is on hold in Germany,

but elsewhere,
across ten other European states,

including Croatia and Latvia,
it's either already in place

or being reintroduced.

In some of these countries,
that has been extended to women too.

But are they willing
to be sent to war?

Anna Holligan has this report.

Europe is training more troops
as tensions with Russia rise.

Some countries
are turning to conscription,

requiring citizens to complete
a period of military service.

During the World Wars,
only men could be forced

to go to the front line.

Now some nations
are drafting women, too.

It's a big step to take,
because it's a way of saying

this threat that we're
facing is so important

that everyone
has to play their part,

and everyone includes women.

It's created debate
about who should serve.

In the situation
that the world is in now,

it's needed, I think.

And I think it's only fair and right

that women participate
equally as with the men.

I do not want to die.
I do not want PTSD.

And also I'm scared about, like,
life in the battlefield as a woman.

So why is Europe rebuilding
its armies now?

And is there support
for sending women to war?

The modern concept of conscription
began during the French Revolution,

when all men aged 18 to 25
had to report for duty.

Other nations followed
France's model in the 19th century,

and in the World Wars
millions were conscripted.

Women were drafted too -
working on farms,

in factories and in hospitals.

Some served in the military, but
they weren't sent to the front line.

Across Europe,
conscription policies were kept

until the end of the Cold War,

when hopes of lasting peace led
many countries to phase it out.

The fall of the Berlin Wall,

and there was a broad restructuring,
in a lot of European countries

that happened of our militaries.

Defence spending shrank,
militaries shrank with them.

But some countries never
suspended conscription,

with Russia and several
former USSR states

also retaining forms

of Soviet-era
military service.

Those are mostly countries
that are close

to some sort of territorial threat,
whether that is Greece and Turkey,

or whether that is the countries
that are bordering Russia.

In Norway, military service
has always been mandatory for men

as part of its constitution.

But in 2013, the country
voted to extend it to women,

saying there should be equal rights
and obligations.

They have access to parts of
the population that men don't -

for instance, in intelligence
gathering, to be able to communicate

with the female part of the society

in parts of the world
that we do operations.

Typically, service lasts
around a year,

and former conscripts
can be called back

to the army for
the next 26 years, if needed.

Following Russia's annexation
of Crimea in 2014,

Ukraine and Lithuania
reinstated

compulsory military
service for men.

Sweden did too,
in 2017,

this time
including women.

Countries that have
introduced conscription for women

in Europe have tended to be
northern European countries,

which are not only closer to Russia,
but they are also countries

that have valued gender equality
very highly.

Russia's 2022 full-scale invasion
of Ukraine further highlighted

the need for European countries
to grow their armies.

This has turned into
a war of attrition

where Ukraine has struggled
to recruit enough troops

to match Russia's rate
of mobilisation.

And European leaders in front-line
states have now warned

that Nato could soon find
itself at war with Russia.

Since Russia's invasion,
these countries

have made plans to bring back
compulsory service for men,

while those in blue
are rolling out

new voluntary military
training programmes.

Denmark has also said it
would extend its draft

from 4 to 11 months,

and that women
would have to serve too.

Fears President Donald Trump
might withdraw US funding from Nato

unless European partners step up
defence spending

have also driven
a recruitment effort.

If they don't pay,
I'm not going to defend them.

The reason why we are now
reintroducing conscription

is because of a greater threat
from Russia,

but also greater uncertainty
as to whether we can

still rely on
the US security guarantee.

In most countries, people can
refuse the military draft

and opt for civilian service
instead.

But failing to reply to a call-up
can lead to fines or even arrest.

Denmark says it currently
has enough volunteers

to fill its ranks,
and across the Nordic states,

public support for female
conscription is strong.

But in other countries
bordering Russia,

like Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania,
it's much lower.

Despite this, some politicians,

like Latvian Defence Minister
Andris Spruds,

say women are needed.

Because we live
next to aggressor country,

because we need to strongly increase

our comprehensive defence, women,
the gender-neutral approach,

this is crucial. In general,
this is principle

which strengthens our defence
and our security of our people

within specific nations,
but also in Nato at large.

At the moment, these calls
are just proposals,

but a falling birth rate could
make the situation more urgent.

The problem will arrive about 2040,

because birth cohorts of the past
two or three years have been

so low that if we are still
in the same security situation,

then we will just...
We will not have enough people.

Gender-equal conscription
will mean armies

need to make provisions
for uniform and weaponry,

which are largely designed for men.

And there are fears
about women operating

in male-dominated environments.

Increasingly, we're seeing examples
coming from European countries

where women soldiers are very
vulnerable to sexual harassment,

abuse, assault, and militaries
have struggled

to understand how to deal
with this.

But countries hope that,
despite the challenges,

increasing defences like this will
prevent future Russian aggression.

Thanks for joining me
in Berlin.

We want your feedback on Global Eye.

Let us know what you think on
social media using the hashtag...

Next week, we'll be reporting
from South Africa. Goodbye.