Equipo Nizkor - UNSC S/2016/678 - 34th Note by the Director-General of the OPCW on the progress in the elimination of the Syrian chemical weapons programme (Jun.-Jul. 16).

United Nations
Security Council

S/2016/678

Distr.: General
3 August 2016
Original: English

Letter dated 2 August 2016 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the Security Council

I have the honour to transmit herewith the thirty -fourth monthly report of the Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), submitted pursuant to paragraph 12 of Security Council resolution 2118 (2013) (see annex). The report covers the period from 24 June to 22 July 2016.

With respect to the destruction of chemical weapons production facilities declared by the Syrian Arab Republic, the Government of the Syrian Arab Republic has informed OPCW that the security situation continues to prevent safe access to destroy the remaining hangar. I note that the Director-General also states that the condition of the two stationary above-ground facilities remains unconfirmed, also owing to the poor security situation.

With respect to the initial declaration by the Syrian Arab Republic and subsequent submissions, I take note that the Director-General has reported to the OPCW Executive Council on the outcome of his consultations with the Syrian Arab Republic regarding its Chemical Weapons Declaration. I further note that although new information has been provided to OPCW by the Syrian Arab Republic on some outstanding items, resulting in the submission of new amendments to relevant parts of its declaration, the OPCW Technical Secretariat was not in a position to verify the underpinning explanations given. I note that the Director-General has also attached his report entitled "Outcome of consultations with the Syrian Arab Republic regarding its Chemical Weapons Declaration". That report was made available to members of the Security Council only.

The use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Arab Republic is unacceptable. I strongly condemn any use of such materials by any party to the conflict, and once again call for the perpetrators of any such acts to be brought to justice.

Pursuant to Security Council resolution 2235 (2015), the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons -United Nations Joint Investigative Mechanism is advancing with the investigation of the nine selected cases. During the reporting period, the Mechanism continued to receive technical briefings and information relevant to its investigation from a number of Member States in New York, in The Hague and in capitals. It also received technical assessments from forensic institutes and from experts. The Mechanism continued its engagement with non-governmental organizations and individuals that possess information about the cases under investigation. The Leadership Panel and the Mechanism's investigators will be in Damascus for consultations and technical meetings from 1 to 5 August 2016. The Mechanism will submit a written report to the Security Council in August.

I reiterate my call on Member States and relevant stakeholders, including from the region, to promptly share information that may help the Mechanism to fulfil its mandate. I also reiterate the importance of continued cooperation by the Government of the Syrian Arab Republic to the requests of the Mechanism for information and/or access.

(Signed) BAN Ki-moon

Annex

Letter dated 25 July 2016 from the Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons addressed to the Secretary-General

[Original: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish]

I have the honour to transmit to you my report entitled "Progress in the elimination of the Syrian chemical weapons programme", prepared in accordance with the relevant provisions of OPCW Executive Council decision EC-M-33/DEC.1 and United Nations Security Council resolution 2118 (2013), both dated 27 September 2013, for transmission to the Security Council (see enclosure). My report covers the period from 24 June to 22 July 2016 and also covers the reporting requirements of Executive Council decision EC-M-34/DEC.1, dated 15 November 2013. Please also find attached my report entitled "Outcome of consultations with the Syrian Arab Republic regarding its Chemical Weapons Declaration", dated 30 June 2016. This is a redacted version of the Highly Protected Report that was circulated to the States Parties in The Hague.

(Signed) Ahmet Üzümcü

Enclosure

[Original: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish]

Note by the Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons

Progress in the elimination of the Syrian chemical weapons programme

1. In accordance with subparagraph 2 (f) of the decision by the Executive Council (hereinafter "the Council") at its Thirty-Third Meeting (EC-M-33/DEC.1, dated 27 September 2013), the Technical Secretariat (hereinafter "the Secretariat") is to report to the Council on a monthly basis regarding the implementation of that decision. In accordance with paragraph 12 of United Nations Security Council resolution 2118 (2013), the report by the Secretariat is also to be submitted to the Security Council through the Secretary-General.

2. The Council, at its Thirty-Fourth Meeting, adopted a decision entitled "Detailed Requirements for the Destruction of Syrian Chemical Weapons and Syrian Chemical Weapons Production Facilities" (EC-M-34/DEC.1, dated 15 November 2013). In paragraph 22 of that decision, the Council decided that the Secretariat should report on its implementation "in conjunction with its reporting required by subparagraph 2 (f) of Council decision EC-M-33/DEC.1".

3. The Council, at its Forty-Eighth Meeting, adopted a decision entitled "Reports of the OPCW Fact-Finding Mission in Syria" (EC-M-48/DEC.1, dated 4 February 2015) noting the Director-General's intent to include reports of the Fact-Finding Mission (FFM), along with information on the Council's discussion thereof, as part of the monthly reporting pursuant to United Nations Security Council resolution 2118 (2013). Similarly, the Council, at its Eighty-First Session, adopted a decision entitled "Report by the Director-General Regarding the Declaration and Related Submissions by the Syrian Arab Republic" (EC-81/DEC.4, dated 23 March 2016), noting the Director-General's intent to provide information on the implementation of that decision.

4. This, the thirty-fourth monthly report, is therefore submitted in accordance with the aforementioned Council decisions, and includes information relevant to the period from 24 June to 22 July 2016.

Progress achieved by the Syrian Arab Republic in meeting the requirements of Executive Council decisions EC-M-33/DEC.1 and EC-M-34/DEC.1

5. Progress by the Syrian Arab Republic is as follows:

(a) With respect to the 27 chemical weapons production facilities (CWPFs) declared by the Syrian Arab Republic, the Secretariat has verified the destruction of 24, and 3 remain to be verified as destroyed. The security situation continues to prevent safe access to destroy the remaining aircraft hangar, which stands ready to accept the explosive charges. The condition of the two stationary above-ground facilities remains unconfirmed, also due to the poor security situation.

(b) On 14 July 2016, the Syrian Arab Republic submitted to the Council its thirty-second monthly report (EC-83/P/NAT.1, dated 14 July 2016) regarding activities on its territory related to the destruction of its CWPFs, as required by paragraph 19 of EC M 34/DEC.1.

(c) The Syrian authorities have continued to extend the necessary cooperation in accordance with the implementation of subparagraph 1 (e) of EC-M-33/DEC.1 and paragraph 7 of United Nations Security Council resolution 2118 (2013).

Progress in the elimination of Syrian chemical weapons by States Parties hosting destruction activities

6. As reported previously, all the chemicals declared by the Syrian Arab Republic that were removed from its territory in 2014 have now been destroyed.

Activities carried out by the Secretariat with respect to Executive Council decision PEC-81/DEC.4

7. Following the latest round of consultations with senior-level officials of the Syrian Arab Republic from 20 to 22 June 2016, and in line with the Council's decision at its Eighty-First Session (EC-81/DEC.4), the Director-General issued a detailed report entitled "Outcome of Consultations with the Syrian Arab Republic Regarding its Chemical Weapons Declaration" (EC-82/HP/DG.2*, dated 30 June 2016). This document will be included as part of the Director-General's monthly reporting to the United Nations Secretary-General in July 2016.

8. The Director-General also issued an unclassified version of the conclusions of the above-mentioned report (EC-82/HP/DG.2*) entitled "Conclusions on the Outcome of Consultations with the Syrian Arab Republic Regarding its Chemical Weapons Declaration" (EC-82/DG.18, dated 6 July 2016), which noted that through the series of consultations with senior officials of the Syrian Arab Republic, new information was provided by the Syrian Arab Republic on some outstanding items, which resulted in the submission of new amendments to relevant parts of its declaration. However, the Secretariat was not in a position to verify the underpinning explanations given for these amendments, owing to a number of factors. In particular, the lack of original documentation and access to senior leadership within the Syrian chemical weapons programme has precluded the Secretariat from understanding the full scope of activities. In addition, some explanations were not scientifically or technically plausible.

9. Prior to the Council's deliberations at its Eighty-Second Session, held from 12 to 15 and 20 July 2016, a Note by the Director-General entitled "Report on the Work of the Declaration Assessment Team Regarding the Declaration and Related Submissions by the Syrian Arab Republic" (EC-82/HP/DG.3, dated 4 July 2016) was circulated to States Parties, describing the technical details related to all outstanding issues requiring clarification, the efforts undertaken by the Declaration Assessment Team (DAT) to assist the Syrian Arab Republic in arriving at a declaration that is accurate and complete, and the basis for the Secretariat's conclusion that the Syrian declaration cannot be fully verified as accurate and complete in accordance with the Chemical Weapons Convention and Council decision EC-M-33/DEC.1. The Secretariat also provided a comprehensive technical briefing to States Parties regarding this report on 7 July 2016.

10. The Secretariat provided a follow-up briefing on the activities of the DAT during the Eighty-Second Session of the Council. The Director-General also delivered a statement on the activities of the Secretariat with regard to the declaration of the Syrian Arab Republic (EC-82/DG.24, dated 13 July 2016). A draft decision entitled "Report by the Director-General on the Outcome of Consultations with the Syrian Arab Republic Regarding its Chemical Weapons Declaration" (EC-82/DEC/CRP.5, dated 7 July 2016) was also circulated by the United States of America and discussed by the Council at its Eighty-Second Session. The Council was not able to reach consensus on the adoption of this draft decision.

Other activities carried out by the Secretariat with respect to the Syrian Arab Republic

11. As requested by the Council at its Seventy-Fifth Session (paragraph 7.12 of EC-75/2, dated 7 March 2014), the Secretariat, on behalf of the Director-General, has continued to brief States Parties in The Hague on its activities.

12. As at the cut-off date of this report, one OPCW staff member was deployed as part of the OPCW Mission in the Syrian Arab Republic.

Supplementary resources

13. As previously reported, a Trust Fund for Syria Missions was established in November 2015 to support the FFM and other remaining activities, such as those of the DAT. As at the cut-off date of this report, contribution agreements totalling EUR 7.8 million had been concluded with Canada, Chile, Finland, France, Germany, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, Switzerland, the United States of America, and the European Union. Pledges from other donors have been made and are currently being processed.

Activities carried out with respect to the OPCW Fact-Finding Mission in Syria

14. During the reporting period, the FFM continued to study all available information relating to allegations of use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Arab Republic, and will be continue to be guided in its work by Council decisions EC-M-48/DEC.1 and EC-M-50/DEC.1 (dated 23 November 2015), as well as by United Nations Security Council resolution 2209 (2015). A briefing was provided by the FFM to the Council at its Eighty-Second Session. The OPCW also continued to extend its full cooperation and support to the OPCW -UN Joint Investigative Mechanism.

Conclusion

15. The main focus of the future activities of the OPCW Mission in the Syrian Arab Republic will continue to be on the implementation of Council decision EC-81/DEC.4, as well as on the destruction and verification of the remaining aircraft hangar, confirmation of the status of the two stationary above-ground facilities, and annual inspections of the underground structures already verified as destroyed.

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03Aug16

34th Note by the Director-General of the OPCW on the progress in the elimination of the Syrian chemical weapons programme (Jun.-Jul. 16)