Destruction of Syria's chemical weapons

(top) transporting chemicals from Syria, Feb 2014 For some time, though Syria denied possession of chemical weapons, Syria was believed to have the world's third-largest stockpile of chemical weapons, after the United States and Russia. With the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War in 2011 concerns were raised about both the security of Syria's chemical weapon sites and about the potential use of chemical weapons. On 21 August 2013, rockets containing the chemical agent sarin struck several opposition-controlled or disputed areas of the Ghouta suburbs of Damascus, resulting in the death of more than 300 people and injury to thousands in the Ghouta chemical attack. President Barack Obama used the phrase "red line" in reference to the use by Syria of chemical weapons. The United States and other Western countries blamed the Syrian government for the attack, while Syria blamed civil war opposition forces. In response to Ghouta, a coalition of countries led by the United States and France, which support the rebels, threatened air strikes on Syria. Russia, a key ally of Syria, along with China had earlier blocked efforts by the United States, France, and the UK to secure United Nations Security Council approval for military intervention. On 9 September 2013, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry stated in response to a question from a journalist that the air strikes could be averted if Syria turned over "every single bit" of its chemical weapons stockpiles within a week, but Syria "isn't about to do it and it can't be done". Hours after Kerry's statement, Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov announced that Russia had suggested to Syria that it relinquish its chemical weapons, and Syrian foreign minister Walid al-Moallem immediately welcomed the proposal, On 27 September, the Executive Council of the OPCW adopted a decision, "Destruction of Syrian Chemical Weapons", A joint OPCW-UN mission to supervise the destruction or removal of Syria's chemical arms, while its Director-General was charged with notifying the Executive Council regarding any delay in implementation. The Executive Council was to decide whether the non-compliance should be reported to the Security Council, which was responsible to ensure that Syria fulfilled its commitments under Resolution 2118. (According to Rolling Stone, White House staff stated off the record that Obama and Putin had already privately agreed in principle to start peacefully relieving Assad of his chemical weapons by 5 September, days earlier than the 9 September public breakthrough.) As a result of these negotiations, in September 2013 Syria joined the Chemical Weapons Convention (formally acceding on 14 October), and agreed to the destruction of its chemical weapons, under the supervision of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, as required by the convention. ==Framework for Elimination of Syrian Chemical Weapons==

Negotiations and agreement and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on 12 September, at beginning of Syrian chemical weapons talks From 12 to 14 September 2013, details of the Framework for Elimination of Syrian Chemical Weapons were negotiated at the InterContinental Hotel in Geneva, Switzerland. High-level negotiations were held between Kerry and Lavrov, with large teams of experts simultaneously working on technical details. A key breakthrough was reported to occur when the U.S. and Russia agreed on their approximations of the Syrian chemical weapon stockpile (estimated at 1,000 tons of sarin, mustard agent and VX nerve agent). and in doing so becoming a member of the OPCW. This committed Syria not to use chemical weapons, to destroy its chemical weapons within 10 years, and to convert or destroy all of its chemical weapons production facilities. Overview and enforcement In the Framework, formally "Framework for the Elimination of Syrian Chemical Weapons", Russia and the United States agreed to the following target dates: • Syria to provide a comprehensive listing of its weapons to the OPCW by 21 September 2013 • initial OPCW on-site inspections of declared sites to be completed by November 2013 • equipment for producing, mixing, and filling chemical weapons to be destroyed by November 2013 • all chemical weapons material and equipment to be eliminated in the first half of 2014 The Framework states that, in the event of noncompliance, the UN Security Council should impose measures under Chapter VII of the UN Charter. The Framework does not state how Syria's compliance would be measured, or what the penalties Syria would incur if it did not comply. Under the UN Charter, Chapter VII measures range from "demonstrations" to sanctions or military action and could be vetoed by any of the five permanent members of the Security Council. Russia and China had previously vetoed three resolutions attempting to condemn or sanction Syria, and were considered likely to block any future Security Council sanctioned military action against Syria. The U.S. indicated it might resort to military action outside the UN if Syria failed to comply with the Security Council resolution requiring it to eliminate its chemical weapons. Chlorine, a common industrial chemical which would later allegedly be used in poison-gas attacks inside Syria in 2014, is not on the list of prohibited chemicals covered by the disarmament agreement. Reactions to the Framework The Framework was received positively by France, Germany, the UK, the European Union, China, and the Arab League. Israel expressed cautious optimism, but was skeptical that Syria would comply. Ali Haidar, Syria's Minister of National Reconciliation, praised the agreement as "a victory for Syria that was achieved thanks to our Russian friends". He described the agreement as removing a pretext for a U.S. attack on the country. ==OPCW Executive Council decision==

The Executive Council of the OPCW met on 27 September and adopted a decision, "Destruction of Syrian Chemical Weapons", The plan adds detail to but does not vary from the basic deadlines in the U.S.–Russian Framework. The OPCW stated that the Executive Council had agreed on "an accelerated programme for achieving the complete elimination of Syria's chemical weapons by mid-2014. The decision requires inspections in Syria to commence from 1 October 2013." Inspectors were given unusually broad authority because Syria was required under the plan to provide inspectors unobstructed access to any suspected chemical weapons site, even if the Syrian government had not identified the location in its list of chemical weapons sites, and without the special procedures normally required for "Challenge Inspections" under Article IX of the convention. Requirements for Syria Under the Decision, which was incorporated into Security Council Resolution 2118, Syria is required to take the following actions: • submit to the Secretariat by 4 October further information (to that provided on 19 September 2013) on its chemical weapons, in particular: "(i) the chemical name and military designator of each chemical in its chemical weapons stockpile, including precursors and toxins, and quantities thereof; (ii) the specific type of munitions, sub-munitions, and devices in its chemical weapons stockpile, including specific quantities of each type that are filled and unfilled; and (iii) the location of all of its chemical weapons, chemical weapons storage facilities, chemical weapons production facilities, including mixing and filling facilities, and chemical weapons research and development facilities, providing specific geographic coordinates", • submit the declaration required by Article III of the Chemical Weapons Convention to the OPCW Secretariat no later than 27 October, • complete elimination of all its chemical weapons material and equipment during the first half of 2014, "subject to the detailed requirements, including intermediate destruction milestones, to be decided by the [Executive] Council not later than 15 November 2013", • complete destruction of its chemical weapons mixing/filling and production equipment by 1 November, • cooperate fully with Decision implementation, including providing OPCW personnel with "immediate and unfettered right to inspect any and all sites in the Syrian Arab Republic", and • designate one official as the OPCW Secretariat's main point of contact and provide that person with authority to ensure that the Decision is fully implemented. ==Security Council Resolution 2118==

Negotiations over the Security Council resolution were initially contentious, as the United States, the United Kingdom and France submitted a draft resolution that included an automatic invocation of Chapter VII, sanctioning use of military force if Syria failed to fulfill its commitments under the agreement. Russia and China continued to maintain its opposition to any military action against Syria under Chapter VII, without a second vote of the Security Council. On the following day, just hours after the OPCW Executive Council approved a detailed implementation plan for the Framework Agreement, Security Council Resolution 2118 was unanimously passed, making the OPCW implementation plan binding on the Syrians. If Syria did not comply with either demand, the Security Council would need to adopt a second resolution regarding imposition of military or other actions against Syria under Chapter VII. Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov has stressed that the Western and Arab-backed rebels in the Syrian civil war must also comply with the UN resolution, and must ensure that extremists do not acquire chemical weapons. "The responsibility is not only on the Syrian government," he stated, "but also on the opposition and all the states in this sphere should of course not allow these weapons to fall into the hands of non-state actors." Reactions to Security Council Resolution 2118 ==Implementation==

. On these sites a combined 41 facilities were present containing "1,300 tons of chemical precursors and agents and 1,230 unfilled munitions". According to U.S. chemical weapons nonproliferation expert Amy Smithson, declared sites are believed to include: • four production facilities near Safira, Khan Abu Shamat, Homs, and Hama • six storage facilities near Safira, Homs, Hama, Furqlus, Latakia, and Palmyra • a research and development site in Damascus. Preparations and preliminary inspections Within 24 hours of having received an "initial declaration" document from Syria, the OPCW started a review of the inventory. The OPCW stated that it would use on-site inspections to verify the accuracy of the disclosure by Syria. It would also "assist in putting into place arrangements to keep the warfare materials and the relevant facilities secure until their destruction". Specifically, under OPCW supervision Syrian military personnel had begun "destroying munitions such as missile warheads and aerial bombs and disabling mobile and static mixing and filling units". In a letter to the Security Council, Ban set out the mission's three phases: establish an initial presence and verify Syria's stockpiles declaration; oversee chemical weapons destruction; and verify destruction of all chemical arms related materials and programs. Implementation challenges UN Secretary-General Ban in early October publicly recognized many of the challenges of the weapons destruction effort, in particular, the dangerous nature of chemical arms destruction during a civil war, especially in urban areas such as Damascus, Aleppo, and Homs. "Heavy artillery, airstrikes, mortar barrages and the indiscriminate shelling of civilian areas are commonplace and battle lines shift quickly," he wrote. In order to do so, they will need to cross battle lines between governments and rebel forces. OPCW director-general Ahmet Uzumcu stated in early October that completing the destruction process by the mid-2014 deadline will depend on whether temporary cease-fires can be arranged between opposition and government forces. Also exceptionally challenging will be the movement and destruction of deadly agents such as sarin, VX nerve agents, and mustard agent during the civil war. In February 2014, Syria stated that rebels had attempted to attack two convoys transporting chemical weapons. Li Hong, secretary-general of the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association, stated that both the turbulent civil war and the financial cost of chemical weapons disposal will be a heavy burden on the Syrian government, and called it "unrealistic" to expect Syrian chemical weapons to be eliminated by 2014. Expert opinions were summarized in Foreign Policy magazine as follows: "Taking control of [Syria]'s enormous stores of [chemical] munitions would be difficult to do in the midst of a brutal civil war. Dozens of new facilities for destroying the weapons would have to be built from scratch or brought into the country from the U.S., and completing the job would potentially take a decade or more." In October 2013, Amy Smithson of the Center for Nonproliferation Studies stated that the government appeared to be cooperating, but cautioned that the Syrian government had a "very sorry track record" on working with nuclear inspectors and that it is easier to hide chemical weapons than a nuclear program. In April 2014, disarmament experts such as Ralf Trapp characterized the pace of the operation as impressively quick. With 92.5% of the arsenal removed or destroyed, Trapp noted that many people had not expected such speed to be achievable given the ongoing civil war. Later activity In late October 2013, the OPCW said it expected the 1 November deadline for destruction of CW production, mixing, and munition-filling capability to be met. It was reported on 23 October that it had visited 18 of 23 declared sites. It was reported that low tech, quick and cheap' methods were being used, such as filling equipment with concrete, smashing it, sometimes using heavy vehicles". The OPCW "said the Syrian government had provided complete co-operation with the 27 weapons inspectors in the country". A statement from the OPCW read: "The OPCW is satisfied it has verified, and seen destroyed, all declared critical production, mixing, filling equipment from all 23 sites." By early November the search of disclosed sites was nearly over. On 7 November, the OPCW said that one of the two unvisited sites had been officially verified as "dismantled and abandoned", based in part on images that the Syrian government shot using a "tamperproof" GPS-enabled camera provided by the OPCW. Later, in January 2014, U.S. Ambassador Robert Mikulak worried that the October destruction was incomplete and "reversible" and claimed that it did not, in fact, meet requirements. On 15 November, the OPCW approved a plan to transport Syria's chemical weapons to a location outside its territory by 5 February 2014, where the weapons would then be destroyed. Acceptance of shipments of the 1,000 tons of chemical agents for destruction have been refused by most countries approached by the OPCW. , Belgium and France were still considering whether to agree to such shipments. The Norwegian government hired in the Norwegian registered RoRo cargo ship for the mission. Denmark will participate with the Danish frigate HDMS Esbern Snare and the Danish government has hired in the civilian cargo ship Ark Futura for the mission. The United States destroyed the highest-priority chemicals, which were scheduled for removal from Syria by 31 December, using a U.S. Army Field Deployable Hydrolysis System. The United Kingdom gave the United States £2.5 million of specialist equipment and training to enable the highest-priority chemicals to be processed more quickly. In addition around 150 tonnes of priority two chemicals, toxic material similar to industrial chemical agents, were transported to the UK with the help of the British Royal Navy and destroyed there. The remaining stock of priority two chemicals not going to Britain were destroyed by commercial companies. The first shipment of components for chemical weapons were removed from Syria by a Norwegian/Danish flotilla on 7 January 2014. The 31 December deadline for complete removal of priority chemicals had been missed; on 7 January, The New York Times assessed the delay was due to the difficulty of overland transport of chemical weapons in the middle of a civil war. A second shipment was removed around 27 January; that same day, the U.N. Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, expressed concern over the worsening delays and assessed that Syria already has the resources required to transport the weapons promptly despite the ongoing civil war. On 2 July, the Danish ship Ark Futura arrived in the Italian port of Gioia Tauro, carrying the chemical weapons, which were then loaded onto the U.S. ship Cape Ray. The Cape Ray was equipped with two Field Deployable Hydrolysis Systems capable of neutralizing the poisonous substances and converting them into industrial waste. On 19 July 2014, around 250 protesters gathered at the Souda base to protest the elimination of the chemical weapons in the nearby region of the Mediterranean Sea. Delays (blue hull, centre) and MV Taiko (red hull, far right) are escorted by KDM Esbern Snare of the Royal Danish Navy (far left), of the Royal Navy (bottom), and KNM Helge Ingstad of the Royal Norwegian Navy (top) By 30 January 2014, only about four percent of the priority chemicals had been removed. Syria continued to blame security issues; U.S. officials disagreed and accused the government of deliberately causing or prolonging the delay. The U.S. blamed Syria's Assad government for intentionally delaying efforts to remove chemical arms from the country for destruction, suggesting that the goal of liquidating the arsenal by midyear is in jeopardy. Stating that Assad was, in effect, slow-walking the chemicals in order to obtain more security equipment, U.S. Ambassador Robert P. Mikulak said that "Syria has demanded armored jackets for shipping containers, electronic countermeasures, and detectors for improvised explosive devices." He said the demands are "without merit" and "display a 'bargaining mentality' rather than a security mentality". Around 21 February, Syria proposed a hundred-day plan for removal of the chemicals. British official Philip Hall criticized the plan as "not adequate". At the time, the US had stated destruction of the chemicals, once off-site, would take 90 days; given that timeframe, Syria's proposed May removal deadline would not leave enough time for all munitions to be destroyed to meet the end-of-June deadline for complete destruction of Syria's chemical weapons. Around 4 March, Syria agreed to a 60-day timetable for removal of the stockpile. By 4 March 2014, almost a third of the stockpile had been removed or destroyed. Syria missed a 15 March deadline for destroying its 12 chemical weapons production facilities. Syria proposed to instead render the facilities inoperable by sealing their entrances; the U.S. and its allies opposed this proposal and insisted on destruction. On 27 April, Syria missed its revised 60-day deadline for complete removal of its full chemical weapons arsenal. As at 23 May, Syria had removed or destroyed 92.5% of its declared chemical stockpile. On 23 June, the head of OPCW, Ahmet Üzümcü, announced in The Hague that the last of Syria's declared chemical weapons had been shipped out of the country for destruction. The last 8% of the chemical stockpile was loaded onto ships at Latakia. The most toxic chemicals, including sarin precursors and sulphur mustard, were destroyed by 18 August aboard the US naval vessel MV Cape Ray. The remaining were destroyed in the US, UK and Finland. On 4 January 2015, the OPCW stated that destruction was completed. Despite American criticisms of the delays, the OPCW in July 2014 described Syria's cooperation as "satisfactory". Problems with cargo In a news article published in Norway's biggest newspaper Verdens Gang in December 2015, it was revealed that the operation had been far more dramatic then expected and reported. There were rocket attacks against Latakia while "Taiko" was docked. There were explosions and strikes around the docks and there were incidents where boats that could be intent on possible suicide attacks would come too close to the ships and had to be warned off. The commander of the Norwegian frigate requested that the moorings on the freighter "Taiko" were rigged with explosive charges every time she went to land in Syria so the lines could be remotely severed very quickly in an emergency allowing the ship to get to safer waters as soon as possible if any threat occurred. From the start, the shipments of containers that were transported to the cargo ships were in bad shape and some leaked potentially lethal material and gases. The containers were characterized by having been filled up hastily in a war zone before they were transported to the pier and handed to the Norwegian forces. When almost half of the cargo gave signs of leakage, an emergency meeting was held onboard Taiko with representatives from OPCW, UN, USA, Norway, Denmark, Syria and Finland. The Norwegian soldiers were ordered to deal with the situation. However no country would accept a docking of the ship with the material leaking on board, and Norwegian personnel and ships had to sail back to Syria and deal with such containers and in some cases move the material to different containers. ==Violations==

The Economist reported in early October 2013 that Syria had disclosed 19 chemical weapons-related sites, whilst unnamed Western intelligence sources believed that 45 sites existed. In Science Insider, experts stated that there was a possibility of incomplete record-keeping, citing an incident in 2002 wherein Albania discovered, in a cluster of mountain bunkers, 16 tons of primitive, undocumented chemical weapon agents that Albania had forgotten about. Chemical weapons expert Winfield has commented that the success of the destruction plan depends on Syria revealing all of its chemical arms stockpile, much of which is moveable and may be spread across dozens of sites. Alleged chlorine attacks continued throughout the war; for example, according to the United Nations, there were at least three incidents in Syria in 2016 where chlorine was used by the regime. In July 2014, Assad disclosed to the OPCW "a facility for the production of ricin" but stated that "the entire quantity of ricin produced was disposed of prior to the entry into force" of the Chemical Weapons Convention. The lateness of this disclosure raised doubts about the completeness of the government's declaration of its chemical weapons stockpile. On 4 April 2017, a chemical attack on Khan Shaykhun with a banned chemical caused around 100 deaths and around 500 injuries. The OPCW found the attack involved "sarin or a sarin-like substance". The United States and others attribute the attack to the Syrian government. The Syrian government claimed the incident was a fabrication and insisted, despite video documentation, that it was "not clear" that an attack had even happened. Russia claimed the incident was caused by Syrian bombs hitting some sort of rebel sarin cache; experts do not consider the Syrian or Russian claims credible, on multiple levels. On 7 April, the United States struck a Syrian airbase in response to the chemical attack. On 17 August 2017, Reuters published a report detailing the extent of Syria's failure to abandon chemical weapons, citing information from investigators, inspectors, and diplomatic sources. According to a source cited in the report, "There are certainly some gaps, uncertainties, discrepancies" regarding Syria's chemical weapons arsenal. For example, the Syrian government inaccurately or even falsely declared the types, purposes, and quantities of chemicals in its possession, and is suspected of continuing to hold at least 2,000 chemical bombshells that should have been converted to conventional weapons. A chemical attack on Douma took place on 7 April 2018 that killed at least 49 civilians with scores injured, and which has been blamed on the Assad government. The blaming of the Assad government for the attack is another indication of the belief that Syria still has chemical weapons. On 19 April 2018, it was reported that between 2014 and 2016 three Belgian companies, in alleged violations of EU sanctions, imposed in 2013, barring the sale of illegal chemical to the Syrian regime, exported chemicals to Syria, including 96 tonnes of isopropanol, a chemical from which sarin nerve gas can be produced. French and German companies have also allegedly sold material to Iran that later turned up in Iranian chemical rockets in Syria. ==See also==