The Hague: The State of Qatar affirmed that the progress made in eliminating the remnants of Syria's chemical weapons program from the former regime era marks a milestone in the work of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and underscores the importance of multilateral efforts in achieving concrete results.
This came in the statement delivered by Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Netherlands HE Dr. Mutlaq bin Majed Al Qahtani, and its Permanent Representative to the OPCW, during the 113th Session of the Organization's Executive Council in The Hague, under the agenda item concerning the elimination of any remnants of the Syrian chemical weapons program inherited from the former regime.
The State of Qatar's efforts since it began representing the interests of the Syrian Arab Republic at the OPCW, in lockstep with brotherly and friendly nations, have helped create conditions for Syria to restore its rights and privileges and make a giant leap forward on this years-long pending issue, His Excellency said.
He added that this collaboration has paved the way for the Syrian government and the OPCW's Technical Secretariat to make a breakthrough in removing remnants of the program by strengthening coordination, facilitating information and document interchange, and supporting verification activities.
HE Majed Al Qahtani called for building on this progress by setting a clear and practical roadmap through coordination between the Technical Secretariat and the Syrian government that ensures a timeframe, implementation phases and defined priorities in the lead-up to the full and verifiable elimination of the remnants of the program and the final resolution of the matter, in conformity with the provisions of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) and relevant decisions of the OPCW's bodies.
In addition, HE Majed Al Qahtani called on States Parties to continue supporting the Syrian government in living up to its obligations under the Convention, thereby helping preclude either the emergence or proliferation of chemical weapons and enabling the Technical Secretariat to effectively and sustainably pursue its work.
