Izumi Nakamitsu on Thursday briefed the Security Council on the findings of the UN-backed Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), which deployed a team to Syria in May.
Inspectors found undeclared chemical munitions, related materials and extensive documentation.
“These findings are a momentous discovery, not only for Syria, but also for international security and the global disarmament regime.”Ms. Nakamitsu told the Council.
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The discovery closes a long-standing gap in Syria’s accounting for its chemical weapons program.
Since 2014, the OPCW had been unable to confirm that Syria’s statement – submitted by the government of ousted President Bashar al-Assad – was accurate or complete.
The new Government led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa has cooperated closely with the inspectors, Ms. Nakamitsu said, facilitating access to the sites and providing the documentation that made the breakthrough possible.
He stressed that the newly discovered weapons must now be formally declared and destroyed under OPCW verification.and that more additional site inspections are needed.
A turning point, but complex work ahead
Syria’s representative to the UN described the discovery as a “decisive turning point” and a “major step forward in accountability,” noting that his government had facilitated 32 visits by OPCW inspectors and handed over more than 60,000 pages of documents.
“Syria suffered from chemical weapons for more than 12 years,” he said. “Today he is committed to getting rid of his legacy.”
Several Council members praised the progress. The UK delegate said the new findings “provide further evidence of Assad’s attempt to actively deceive the international community”, while the US said Syria and the OPCW had shown “adaptability, flexibility and a shared commitment” to closing this chapter.
France, however, warned that the recent discovery “barely begins to reveal the extent of the hidden program to the international community,” and Denmark warned that “the task ahead remains complex,” pointing to the challenging security environment and the number of potentially relevant sites across the country.
Russia is skeptical
Not all Council members celebrated it. Russia’s delegate questioned the speed with which the OPCW appeared to be assigning blame to newly found substances, and urged that the results be examined in a “depoliticized manner.” The OPCW “has been engaged for a long time,” he said.
Türkiye said the discoveries were a “stark reminder of the scale of repression and suffering inflicted on the Syrian people by the former regime” and called for Syria’s rights and privileges to be restored under the Chemical Weapons Convention, suspended in 2021.
For a more complete report on this briefing, please visit our Meeting Coverage place, here.