The High Representative for Disarmament Affairs of the United Nations Izumi Nakamitsu reiterated that gaps, contradictions and disparities persist in the Syrian regime’s declaration of its chemical weapons stockpiles to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). Accordingly, the declaration cannot be considered accurate or complete.
“The views of the members of the Security Council responsible for the Syrian chemical file have always been divided,” Nakamitsu said in her briefing, delivered during the UN Security Council session on Syria, delivered on Tuesday. “Some members express their support for the OPCW’s work, stressing its credibility. But on the other hand, Russia sees OPCW’s work as biased and politicized, while other countries stress the need for the parties to strengthen their bilateral cooperation.”
Nakamitsu explained that the OPCW Declaration Assessment Team had not made progress in its efforts to clarify all outstanding issues with regard to the initial and subsequent declarations of the Syrian regime since the Council last met to discuss the matter.
She pointed out that the OPCW Declaration Assessment Team had not succeeded in holding its twenty-fifth round of consultations with Syrian regime authorities in Damascus.
The OPCW’s Technical Secretariat is committed to ensuring the Syrian regime’s full implementation of all its declaration requirements and assisting the regime in fulfilling its obligations under the Convention,” Nakamitsu stressed.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
