October 25, 2022
Mr. President
I would like to thank the High Representative for Disarmament, Ms. Izumi Nakamitsu, for her briefing on the total elimination of Syria’s chemical weapons program.
We are still faced with a situation that has hardly changed since the last meeting of the Council;
- No progress in discussions between OPCW and the Syrian government;
- No progress on the next inspection in Syria either;
- And, there is no progress on the face-to-face meeting between the OPCW DG and the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of Syria.
To date, following numerous OPCW reports (108 since 2013), there is nothing that leads us to believe that Syria’s chemical weapons program is being destroyed, and unfortunately, Syria’s chemical weapons program continues to remain outside the control of the international community.
Since February 2021, any attempts by the Secretariat to organize the 25th round of consultations between the DAT and the Syrian National Authority have been unsuccessful. Communication is reduced through exchanges of notes verbales. It is clear that Syria is unwilling to cooperate with the OPCW and its teams in the Technical Secretariat, some of whose staff are being denied access in the country, despite paragraph 7 of Security Council Resolution 2118 (2013), which obliges Syria to accept OPCW-designated personnel by providing immediate and unhindered access, necessary for the performance of their duties. We deeply regret Syria’s deliberate lack of cooperation with the OPCW.
Mr. President
The latest OPCW monthly report clearly states that: Given the gaps, inconsistencies, and discrepancies identified that remain unresolved, the Secretariat considers that the statement submitted by Syria (Syria’s 106th monthly report dated 15.09.2022), cannot be considered accurate and complete in accordance with the Convention and Security Council resolution 2118 (2013). We reiterate our full support for the objective, impartial and professional work of the OPCW technical team.
Colleagues,
We welcome the ninth round of inspections of the Barzah and Jamrayah facilities conducted by the Secretariat, from 11 to 18 September 2022, and look forward to the report of its inspections.
In this context, we also commend the Fact-Finding Mission (FMF) for its ongoing activities on determining the use of chemical weapons in Syria, as well as for the Investigation Bureau and Identification Team (IIT) for its ongoing activities to identifying perpetrators of the use of chemicals as weapons in Syria. We look forward to their reports.
We owe it to the victims to ensure that there is no impunity for chemical weapons attacks. Impunity for the use of chemical weapons must not and will not be tolerated.
Mr. President
In conclusion, I would like to reiterate our firm position that the swift closure of investigations into the use of chemical weapons in Syria will enable the Security Council and the international community to support the Syrian people more effectively in their quest for a peaceful future.
Thank you.
