WORLD_ SYRIA_ Syria set to miss weapons deadline

Syria set to miss weapons deadline
AFP
December 30, 2013 12:00AM
THE AUSTRALIAN




A Syrian man sits in the rubble of buildings following a government airstrike in Aleppo, Syria, in this citizen journalism image. Source: AP


SYRIA is "unlikely" to meet a December 31 deadline to move its most dangerous chemical arms out of the country, the UN acknowledged for the first time yesterday.


The UN and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons said "important progress" had been made on eliminating Syria's banned weapons, but called on Bashar al-Assad's government to "intensify efforts" to meet set deadlines.

The year-end deadline was the first key milestone under a UN Security Council-backed deal arranged by Russia and the US that aims to wipe out all Syria's chemical arms by the middle of next year.

"Preparations continue in readiness for the transport of most of the critical chemical material from the Syrian Arab Republic for outside destruction. However, at this stage, transportation of the most critical chemical material before December 31 is unlikely," said a joint UN-OPCW statement.

Syria's worsening civil war, logistical problems and bad weather had held up the operation to move chemical agents to the port of Latakia, the two bodies said.

Under an internationally agreed plan, the chemicals will be taken to a port in Italy where they are to be transported to a US navy ship fitted with equipment to destroy the weapons at sea, according to the diplomats.

Fighting between Assad's forces and opposition rebels had held up transportation of the chemicals, and some details of the destruction operation had still not been finalised, UN diplomats said.

The US-Russia deal for Syria to surrender more than 1000 tonnes of chemical agents averted US-led military strikes after a chemical weapons attack on August 21 near Damascus that the US says killed 1400 people.

The UN and OPCW are monitoring and helping with the operation, but the Syrian government has prime responsibility for moving the chemicals.

"Since the Syrian Arab Republic disclosed its chemical weapons program three months ago, important progress has been made," the UN-OPCW statement said.

Syria had started the destruction of equipment at facilities it declared and completed the eradication of missiles intended for chemical weapons use ahead of schedule.

The UN and OPCW welcomed "important milestones" already met by Assad's government, but highlighted "the importance of maintaining positive momentum".

They said the Syrian government "needs to intensify its efforts to ensure that its international obligations and commitment are met" under the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Security Council resolution that ordered the destruction of its weapons.

UN leader Ban Ki-moon played down the delay in the weapons destruction, insisting in a UN statement that the operation was making "effective progress" as shown by "the steady achievements in meeting all previous milestones in the past three months".

The OPCW executive council is to meet again on January 8 to discuss Syria.

AFP




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