5 June 2025
Madame President,
Distinguished Members of the Security Council,
I thank Council members for the opportunity to brief you once again on the implementation of Security Council resolution 2118 (2013) on the elimination of the chemical weapons programme of the Syrian Arab Republic.
Since the last consideration of this matter by the Council, and consistent with established practice, the Office for Disarmament Affairs has been in regular contact with counterparts in the OPCW Technical Secretariat on activities related to resolution 2118.
Madame President,
Since the Council’s last meeting on this matter, we have continued to observe a new political reality emerge in Syria. As I previously emphasized, and as part of this new reality, there is an important opportunity to obtain long-overdue clarifications on the full extent and scope of the Syrian chemical weapons programme; to rid the country of all chemical weapons; to normalise relations between Syria and the OPCW; and to ensure long-term compliance with the Chemical Weapons Convention.
As reported, for over a decade, the OPCW Technical Secretariat has not been able to confirm that the declaration submitted by the previous Syrian authorities was accurate and complete, because of the insufficient and inaccurate information it contained. Over the last 11 years, the OPCW has reported a total of 26 outstanding issues related to Syria’s declaration, of which 19 remain unresolved. The OPCW Technical Secretariat has reported that the substance of the 19 outstanding issues remains of ‘serious concern’ as it involves large quantities of potentially undeclared or unverified chemical warfare agents and chemical munitions.
Madame President,
In this regard, I welcome the continued engagement by the interim Syrian authorities with the OPCW to address outstanding issues related to Syria’s chemical weapons dossier.
As of the last meeting of the Security Council on this matter, a team of technical experts from the OPCW Technical Secretariat was preparing to be deployed to Damascus to start the work on establishing the OPCW’s permanent physical presence in Syria and start jointly planning deployments to chemical weapons sites. I am pleased to report that this deployment went forward from 12 to 21 March. Furthermore, a second deployment was completed from 14 to 25 April, and the OPCW Technical Secretariat is currently preparing its next deployment to the Syrian Arab Republic.
The aim of the deployments completed to date has been to conduct the necessary activities required to establish the OPCW Mission in the Syrian Arab Republic, to conduct site visits, and to interview personnel with knowledge of the Syrian chemical weapons programme.
During the first deployment, the OPCW team was able to conduct initial visits to five locations in and around Damascus, including the Barzah and Jamrayah facilities of the Scientific Studies and Research Centre (SSRC). During the second deployment, seven locations were visited, in line with the OPCW Technical Secretariat’s priority list, as well as the accessibility of the locations.
Three samples were also collected from one of the visited locations, which OPCW designated laboratories are currently analysing.
During the most recent visit in April, the OPCW team also conducted meetings with the representatives of the Syrian interim authorities, including with the newly appointed Director-General of the Scientific Studies and Research Centre (SSRC) and with H.E. Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani, caretaker Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Syrian Arab Republic. The OPCW team also had a technical meeting with two Syrian experts and gathered new information that had not been previously revealed by the former Syrian authorities.
Madame President,
The OPCW has highlighted that, for both deployments, the interim Syrian authorities extended all necessary support for the OPCW team’s activities. This included unfettered access, inter alia, to sites and people, issuance of visas, and security escorts for field activities. There were also discussions on requirements for the safe conduct of future OPCW activities in Syria and the planning of necessary steps to facilitate such activities.
Madame President,
The OPCW Technical Secretariat remains committed to delivering on its mandate to verify the full implementation by the Syrian Arab Republic of all declaration requirements under the Chemical Weapons Convention, decisions by OPCW policy-making organs and, of course, Security Council resolutions.
The commitment of the new authorities in Syria to fully and transparently cooperate with the OPCW Technical Secretariat is commendable.
However, the work ahead will not be easy and it will require support from the international community as well. The OPCW Technical Secretariat has consistently underscored the importance of additional support and resources from CWC States Parties and relevant international actors to accomplish the tasks needed to rid Syria of all chemical weapons and carry out other mandated activities, such as capacity-building assistance to prevent the re-emergence and proliferation of chemical weapons, as well as training and equipment to enable the Syrian National Authority to respond to and investigate chemical weapons issues and incidents effectively.
Madame President,
Distinguished Members of the Security Council,
I once again urge the members of this Council to unite and show leadership in providing the support that this unprecedented effort will require.
The United Nations stands ready to support and will continue to do our part to uphold the norm against the use of chemical weapons – anywhere, at any time.
I thank you very much for your attention.