(Reuters) — The special coordinator overseeing the elimination of chemical weapons in Syria said on Wednesday that Syria will accelerate the removal of chemical weapons to meet the overall deadline for the program at the end of June.
Sigrid Kaag, head of the Joint Mission of the United Nations (UN) and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to eliminate Syria’s chemical weapons, made the remarks to journalists at the UN headquarters after she briefed to the Security Council behind closed doors.
“There has been an acceleration and intensification of efforts by the Syrian Arab Republic,” Kaag said, “A revised timeline has been submitted by the authorities looking at implementation between the middle and end of April.”
Kaag said that one-third of Syria’s chemical weapons materials has been removed or destroyed and the statistics will change as they proceed in the next few days, during which the number is expected to reach 40 or 41 percent.
She also added that March is critical in continuing progress to meet the overall deadline.
“We look forward to seeing continuous progress, but it remains hard work, a lot of dedication and of course continued commitment to implementation,” Kaag said. “This has been assured by the authorities at the highest level that this will continue.
On Tuesday, the UN-OPCW Joint Mission verified that two more consignments of chemicals left the port of Latakia, including a quantity of mustard gas – a Priority 1 chemical.
Another movement, a significant consignment of other Priority 1 chemicals, is scheduled to arrive in Latakia during this week, which will bring the total number of movements so far to six.
In addition, Syria on Tuesday submitted a revised proposal to the OPCW that aims to complete the removal of all chemicals from the country before the end of next month.
Prior to initiating operations in January to remove its chemicals, Syria, in late 2013, completed the functional destruction of its chemical weapons production facilities, mixing and filling equipment, and all of its munitions that were designed for use with chemical warfare agents.
Damascus missed earlier deadlines in December and February. The UN Security Council and OPCW executive council earlier established the final deadline for the removal and elimination of the Syrian chemical weapons program as the end of June 2014.
