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Chemical Weapons Agency Unveils Plan for Destroying Syria’s Stockpile | |
(about 1 hour later) | |
GENEVA — Helped by a flurry of offers from Russia and China as well as the United States and European countries, the international watchdog agency overseeing the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons unveiled details Wednesday of a multinational effort to get toxic agents out of the country but warned that the program faced delays. | |
Following an offer from the United States last month to destroy the chemical weapons at sea, the Syrian government will start transporting hundreds of tons of toxic agents to the port of Latakia around the end of the year, according to a plan approved by the executive council of the watchdog, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. | Following an offer from the United States last month to destroy the chemical weapons at sea, the Syrian government will start transporting hundreds of tons of toxic agents to the port of Latakia around the end of the year, according to a plan approved by the executive council of the watchdog, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. |
The removal starts a new phase in an agreement reached by Russia and the United States in September that calls for the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons capabilities by June. Despite initial doubts about the cooperation they could expect from President Bashar al-Assad’s government, international inspectors have confirmed that Syria has already destroyed the means of producing chemical weapons and the munitions for delivering them. | |
But the proposal that Ahmet Uzumcu, director general of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, presented to the executive council in The Hague warned that “technical factors have caused delays regarding some aspects of removal operations and may also affect future implementation activities.” The plan was approved late Tuesday and announced on Wednesday. | But the proposal that Ahmet Uzumcu, director general of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, presented to the executive council in The Hague warned that “technical factors have caused delays regarding some aspects of removal operations and may also affect future implementation activities.” The plan was approved late Tuesday and announced on Wednesday. |
Russia has agreed to provide security for loading operations at Latakia’s port but has not said whether it intends to provide troops for that purpose, a European diplomat following developments at the agency said on the condition of anonymity, in line with diplomatic practice. “The plan now has a lot more offers and a lot more parts to it, but we are realistic that there will be challenges,” the diplomat said. | |
Schedules have already been disrupted by a range of factors, including a lack of security in a country convulsed by civil war and bad weather, Mr. Uzumcu reported to the executive council on Tuesday. Clashes in the strategic Qalamoun area and along the key road from Damascus to Homs “pose risks to the timely execution of the operation,” he said. | |
In an operation that would be sensitive under any circumstances and becomes particularly hazardous carried out in the middle of a civil war, the Syrian government will be responsible for packing, transporting and protecting the convoys carrying its deadly chemical agents from 12 sites around the country to Latakia, according to the plan Mr. Uzumcu presented. | In an operation that would be sensitive under any circumstances and becomes particularly hazardous carried out in the middle of a civil war, the Syrian government will be responsible for packing, transporting and protecting the convoys carrying its deadly chemical agents from 12 sites around the country to Latakia, according to the plan Mr. Uzumcu presented. |
To mitigate the risks, Syria will use armored vehicles from Russia, thousands of special containers supplied by the United States, decontamination equipment and GPS locaters, the agency said. | To mitigate the risks, Syria will use armored vehicles from Russia, thousands of special containers supplied by the United States, decontamination equipment and GPS locaters, the agency said. |
China will provide 10 ambulances and surveillance cameras and Finland has offered an emergency response team in case of accidents, the agency said. | |
Denmark and Norway are providing two roll-on, roll-off ships to transport the chemical weapons and two naval vessels to escort them, and Russia and China have also agreed to provide naval escorts, the diplomat said. | Denmark and Norway are providing two roll-on, roll-off ships to transport the chemical weapons and two naval vessels to escort them, and Russia and China have also agreed to provide naval escorts, the diplomat said. |
The cargo ships will link up at an unnamed port in Italy with the American vessel, the Cape Ray, which is being specially fitted with mobile laboratories for destroying the chemicals at sea. Italy’s offer to make the port available, received last week, avoids the risky task of trying to transfer the chemical agents on the high seas. | The cargo ships will link up at an unnamed port in Italy with the American vessel, the Cape Ray, which is being specially fitted with mobile laboratories for destroying the chemicals at sea. Italy’s offer to make the port available, received last week, avoids the risky task of trying to transfer the chemical agents on the high seas. |
In the meantime, Mr. Uzumcu said, the organization will seek offers from commercial companies on Thursday for destruction of the less toxic chemical agents and the effluent the Cape Ray’s operations will produce. The European diplomat said the agency had received 42 expressions of interest from commercial companies. | |
The agency had previously planned to complete removal of Syria’s most deadly chemicals by the end of the year and all the remaining chemical weapons precursors by early February. It still hopes to finish those tasks by February, and Mr. Uzumcu is to meet the organization’s 41 council members again on Jan. 8 to update them. | The agency had previously planned to complete removal of Syria’s most deadly chemicals by the end of the year and all the remaining chemical weapons precursors by early February. It still hopes to finish those tasks by February, and Mr. Uzumcu is to meet the organization’s 41 council members again on Jan. 8 to update them. |
“The plan might slip by a few days,” the European diplomat said. “I don’t think any of us really knows how big the delay is likely to be.” | “The plan might slip by a few days,” the European diplomat said. “I don’t think any of us really knows how big the delay is likely to be.” |
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