Syria has given up "less than 5%" of its chemical weapons arsenal, missing yesterday's (Wednesday's) deadline for destroying stock and provoking accusations from Britain and the US that it was deliberately spinning out the process.
Syria has given up "less than 5%" of its chemical weapons arsenal, missing yesterday's (Wednesday's) deadline for destroying stock and provoking accusations from Britain and the US that it was deliberately spinning out the process.
David Cameron warned Damascus against dragging its heels. The Prime Minister told Parliament: "There do seem to be now indications that the programme is slowing and that not all the information necessary is forthcoming. Britain will continue to put pressure on all parties to make sure the chemical weapons are produced and destroyed."
Syria agreed to the US-Russia brokered deal to give up its chemical weapons arsenal as a deterrent to American military intervention after a suspected sarin gas attack killed more than 1,000 people in Damascus last August.
According to the agreement, Syria was required to turn its "category two", lower grade chemicals to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the international watchdog, for destruction by yesterday. However, it has failed to do so and is six to eight weeks behind schedule for the removal of its entire arsenal. Almost 1,200 tons of chemicals were scheduled to have been removed by ship by yesterday, with the entire stockpile of about 1,300 tons of toxic agents removed by the end of June.
Only a fraction of that has been removed, in the form of two shipments this month from Latakia port, that makes up only 4.1% of the total, according to the US State Department.
The Syrian government has said it needs further support, in the form of armoured vehicles and communications equipment, to complete the task.
Syria has given up "less than 5%" of its chemical weapons arsenal, missing yesterday's (Wednesday's) deadline for destroying stock and provoking accusations from Britain and the US that it was deliberately spinning out the process.
David Cameron warned Damascus against dragging its heels. The Prime Minister told Parliament: "There do seem to be now indications that the programme is slowing and that not all the information necessary is forthcoming. Britain will continue to put pressure on all parties to make sure the chemical weapons are produced and destroyed."
Syria agreed to the US-Russia brokered deal to give up its chemical weapons arsenal as a deterrent to American military intervention after a suspected sarin gas attack killed more than 1,000 people in Damascus last August.
According to the agreement, Syria was required to turn its "category two", lower grade chemicals to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the international watchdog, for destruction by yesterday. However, it has failed to do so and is six to eight weeks behind schedule for the removal of its entire arsenal. Almost 1,200 tons of chemicals were scheduled to have been removed by ship by yesterday, with the entire stockpile of about 1,300 tons of toxic agents removed by the end of June.
Only a fraction of that has been removed, in the form of two shipments this month from Latakia port, that makes up only 4.1% of the total, according to the US State Department.
The Syrian government has said it needs further support, in the form of armoured vehicles and communications equipment, to complete the task.
Source: Latest Hindi News
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