The anti-Syrian decision taken on behalf of Western countries and their allies at the 94th session of the Executive Council of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is regrettable and leads to further politicization of the organization, Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the organization Alexander Shulgin told TASS on Thursday.
According to him, the approval of technically untenable and politically motivated conclusions of the Investigation and Identification Group (IIG), which blamed the Syrian authorities for the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian settlement of al-Latamna on 24, 25 and 30 March 2017, and the introduction of obviously impossible measures against Syria in this regard, is regrettable.
"The result of the vote was achieved through a campaign of pressure, intimidation and bribery launched by Western activists led by the United States," Shulgin stressed. - In the weeks leading up to the session of the Executive Council, Western diplomats beat the doorsteps of diplomatic agencies of various countries, seeking support for the flawed verdict pushed by them. They engaged in this unsightly activity, despite the coronavirus pandemic, and sowed discord and distrust in an environment where, on the contrary, coordinated, solidarity actions of states were more in demand than ever."
"The decision taken by the Executive Council means further politicization of the organization, which is purely technical in its purpose, which in fact was not hidden in their statements at the session by representatives of Western countries, in particular the United States," the diplomat said.
Earlier, the OPCW Executive Council approved a decision concerning Syria proposed by France on behalf of a group of Western countries and some of their allies. The proposal was supported by 29 countries, nine abstained, the Russian Federation, Iran and China voted against. The document calls on Syria to "take the necessary measures" to correct the situation, and demands that this issue be returned to the Conference of states parties in the absence of a response from the Syrian authorities.
Degradation in the OPCW
A day earlier, a group of 19 states, including Russia and China, expressed in a joint statement their deep concern at the degradation of the organization's situation and reaffirmed the unacceptability of international law being replaced, in particular within the OPCW, by rules invented by a small group of countries.
"This joint statement, as well as the result of the vote in the Executive Council (Western countries have tipped the scales on their side thanks to just two votes), refute the opinion imposed by the US and its allies that their position in the Hague is dominant," Shulgin said. - The split in the OPCW is only growing. The only way to improve the situation is to return to a mutually respectful dialogue between the countries participating in the chemical Convention, while strictly observing the requirements of the chemical weapons Convention and international law in general."
OPCW IIG
The IIC distributed its first report on April 8. It claims that the Syrian air force is responsible for three incidents that took place in the village of al-Lataminah in Homs province in March 2017. According to the OPCW investigators, during two of them, on March 24 and 30, Syrian Su-22 warplanes that took off from the Shayrat air base, assigned to the 50th brigade of the 22nd aviation division, dropped bombs containing sarin gas in the South of the settlement. At least 16 people were injured in the first attack, and at least 60 people were injured in the second. In addition, the report says, on March 25, a Syrian air force helicopter that took off from the Hama air base dropped a chlorine balloon on a hospital in al-Lataminah injuring at least 30 people.
The decision to create a IIG that has the right to determine those responsible for the use of chemical weapons was taken at a special session of the OPCW in 2018 on the initiative of the United States and Great Britain. The Russian Federation categorically opposed this decision, since the creation of such a group was not provided for by the Chemical Weapons Convention, and giving the organization prosecutorial functions is an invasion of the exclusive prerogatives of the UN Security Council.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Michael Metzel / TASS