White House says US won't use chemical weapons 'under any circumstance'

National security adviser Jake Sullivan clarified the United States would not retaliate with chemical weapons, despite President Joe Biden saying he would respond "in kind," should Russian President Vladimir Putin tap into his chemical arsenal in Ukraine.

"The United States has no intention of using chemical weapons, period, under any circumstance," Sullivan told reporters Friday on Air Force One.

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En route to Rzeszow, Poland, from Brussels, Belgium, Sullivan pointed to Biden's comments stating "the nature of the response would depend on the nature of the use." Biden later added that "it would trigger a response in kind" but was careful not to suggest it would result in military action.

Sullivan did confirm the Western reaction to Russia's hypothetical deployment of chemical weapons in Ukraine was an "important topic of conversation" among Biden and his NATO, G-7, and European allies in Brussels and "continues at working levels in the military."

"On the diplomatic side, and among the presidents' and prime ministers' offices, we are working through contingency planning for a range of different scenarios," he said. "The form of use, the location of use, the context of use all have a bearing on the specificity of the response, but in broad terms, I believe that there is convergence around the fundamental nature of how the alliance would respond to these issues."

The U.S. and its partners have expressed concern that Russia might rely on chemical or nuclear weapons if Putin's invasion is still thwarted by Ukrainian resistance and his military's own strategic and logistical hurdles.

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Sullivan last month wrote a memo regarding how Biden's so-called Tiger Team would manage the Russia-Ukraine conflict over the next 90 days.