FROM EIR DAILY ALERT
OPCW Reports: Syria Complies with the Chemical Weapons Treaty
April 16, 2018 (EIRNS)—A review of two very recent reports released by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) shows that, despite the outrageous claims being made by the U.S., British, and French governments, the government of Syria is in compliance with its obligations.
On March 13, the OPCW director general issued a report to its executive council covering the broad range of matters being addressed by the organization. In the section of the document on Syria, the director general reported that on Nov. 17, 2017, investigators conducted a round of inspections at the Scientific Studies and Research Center (SSRC) facilities of Barzeh and Jamrayah for the second time—Barzeh is the facility outside of Damascus that was targeted by the bulk of U.S. cruise missiles launched into Syria on the morning of April 14. Joint Staff Director Lt. Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie told reporters at the Pentagon hours after the strikes, that the destruction of the Barzeh facility (supposedly) crippled Syria’s chemical weapons program. In February, samples collected at these two facilities were sent to two designated labs for analysis. On Feb. 23, however, the inspectors “did not observe any activities inconsistent with obligations under the [Chemical Weapons] Convention.”
A March 23 report on the status of Syria’s declarations under the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), states,
“The analysis of samples taken during the inspections did not indicate the presence of scheduled chemicals in the samples, and the inspection team did not observe any activities inconsistent with obligations under the Convention during the second round of inspections at the Barzeh and Jamrayah facilities.”
This is something that U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May needs to be asked to explain, particularly as Russia is demanding to know why the Swiss Spiez lab’s report on the Skripal poisoning has not been released. Does May consider Her Majesty’s government, and not the international treaty organization OPCW, the final authority on charges of chemical weapons use?
