5 June 2025
Thank you, Madam President,
And I thank High Representative and USG Nakamitsu for her informative briefing and I also welcome the Permanent Representative of Syria to today’s meeting.
Colleagues,
Almost six months have passed since the fall of the Assad regime. Images of Syrians celebrating in the streets and the visible signs of hope remain fresh in memory.
While the security situation in Syria remains complex and precarious, some things remain straightforward.
Chemical weapons are illegal.
They must be destroyed and any usage must be investigated and perpetrators must be held to account. Victims have the right to justice.
The brutality of the Assad regime affected all aspects of Syrian life. But perhaps most visibly and most ruthlessly represented through the multiple chemical attacks against civilians conducted over the years.
Now, Syria is taking its first steps in tackling this heavy legacy, in cooperation with the OPCW. This endeavour deserves our collective support.
Madam President, to this end, let me make three brief points.
First,
We welcome the cooperation between the OPCW and the Syrian transitional government.
Statements from the Syrian leadership on the commitment to implementing the provisions in the Chemical Weapons Convention and resolution 2118 are commendable.
We are encouraged by the visits of the Technical Secretariat of the OPCW to Syria, most recently, as we heard, from 14 to 25 of April. These are concrete steps towards establishing a sustained presence by the OPCW in Syria.
We reiterate the importance of the OPCW continuing the dialogue with the Syrian transitional government on both a technical and political level.
While we acknowledge the resource constraints, it is important that the current momentum is sustained and that a dialogue translates into tangible results on the ground.
Second,
Priority must be given to ensuring that no chemical weapons or precursors fall into the hands of terrorists.
ISIL and other terrorist organisations will not hesitate to use these weapons.
We continue to support all efforts to combat ISIL in Syria.
Third and final,
The victims and their relatives deserve justice. Resolution 2118 is clear: the evidence of the crimes of the Assad regime must be secured. Accountability must be ensured.
There can be no impunity for the perpetrators of these chemical weapons attacks, so we all need to do our greatest endeavours to this end.
Madam President, in closing,
The international community, including this Council, must continue to support the OPCW and the Syrian authorities to immediately destroy these horrific weapons once and for all.
Denmark remains steadfast in our support for a peaceful Syria without chemical weapons.
I thank you.