UNSC Consultation on the Middle East (Syria Chemical Weapons Programme)

 
UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL CONSULTATIONS ON THE MIDDLE EAST (SYRIAN CHEMICAL WEAPONS PROGRAMME)
 
I have the honour to deliver this joint statement on behalf of the Permanent Representatives of the A3, Gabon, Kenya and my own country Ghana. We thank High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, Ms. Izumi Nakamitsu, for her briefing and welcome the participation in this meeting of the representatives of the Syrian Arab Republic, the Islamic Republic of Iran and Turkiye. We take note of the contents of the 110th monthly report of the OPCW and welcome the submission of the 108th report of the Syrian Arab Republic. We are reminded yet again of the lack of substantive progress as far as efforts aimed at eliminating the country’s chemical weapons programme are concerned. We also note the Syrian Arab Republic’s submission of a document entitled ‘the General National Document Regarding the Cooperation of the Syrian Arab Republic with the OPCW between 2013 and 2022’ to the Secretariat of the OPCW on 15th November, 2022 and look forward to receiving a copy of the document.
 
Madam President,
We are, however, deeply worried about this lack of tangible progress by the stakeholders to fully address the issue in accordance with the Chemical Weapons Convention and this Council’s resolution 2118 and bring closure to the matter. We underscore that the full cooperation of the Syrian National Authority with the OPCW and its compliance with all aspects of the Decision of the Executive Council of 27th September, 2013, is critical to the breaking of the current impasse on the elimination of the country’s chemical weapons programme. To this end, we regret that the meeting between the Secretariat of the OPCW and the Syrian Arab Republic in Beirut, which was scheduled to take place from 15th to 16th November this year did not take place, as agreed earlier, to deliberate on matters pertaining to the country’s chemical weapons programme. In this regard, we reiterate our call on the Syrian National Authority to engage constructively with the Secretariat of the OPCW to satisfactorily resolve all outstanding issues and, hold the 25th round of consultations with the Declaration Assessment Team (DAT).
 
Madam President,
It is our hope that the on-going communication between the focal points of the two sides to agree on the agenda for the proposed high-level meeting will yield the desired outcome that will ultimately set out a roadmap to address the persistent divergence between the positions of the OPCW and the Syrian Authorities regarding the outstanding gaps, inconsistencies and discrepancies. The prompt resolution of this investigation will allow both the Syrian National Authority and this Council the opportunity to rededicate precious time and resources to the other existing challenges facing the Syrian people.
 
Madam President,
We remind the international community that the use of chemical weapons in Rif Damascus on 21st August, 2013 and the resultant deaths of civilians that outraged the world and spurred it into action, should continue to galvanize us in our quest to completely eliminate the country’s chemical weapons programme and ensure justice for the victims. Meanwhile, we acknowledge the generous contributions and pledges of up to 37 million Euros by a number of countries to the Trust Fund for Syria Missions, which was established in November 2015 to support the Fact Finding Mission and other remaining activities of the OPCW in the country, including the work of the Declaration Assessment Team (DAT) and the Investigation and Identification Team (IIT), among others. We remain committed to the established norms against the use of chemical weapons and support all efforts to rid their production, storage or use. The A3 collectively, reiterates its position against the use of chemical weapons by anyone, anywhere and under any circumstances.

Madam President,
In concluding, as we reaffirm our support for resolution 2118 (2013), we renew our call for enhanced engagement between the OPCW Technical Secretariat and the Syrian National Authority, to address all outstanding issues, which constrain meaningful progress in the full implementation of the resolution.

I thank you for your attention.