thumb|This gendarme mobile is shooting tear gas canisters using a blank">Alsetex "Cougar" launcher Riot control agents are non-lethal lachrymatory agents used for riot control. Most commonly used riot control agents are pepper spray and various kinds of tear gas.

These chemicals disperse a crowd that could be protesting, in a riot, or to clear a building. They can rapidly produce sensory irritation or disabling physical effects which usually disappear 15 minutes (for tear gas) and up to 2 hours (for pepper spray) following termination of exposure. They can also be used for chemical warfare defense training, although their use in warfare itself is a violation of the _Chemical Weapons Convention, Article II, Section 9 of which still authorizes their use for civilian law enforcement .