Kaag: First removal of chemical materials from Syria took place by sea

Special Coordinator of the OPCW-UN Joint Mission on eliminating Syria's chemical weapons programme Sigrid Kaag on Tuesday said "further progress" has been made today as the first removal of chemical materials from Syria took place by sea. She explained in a statement distributed here that a first quantity of priority chemical materials was moved from two sites to the port of Lattakia, Syria, for verification and was then loaded onto a Danish commercial vessel earlier today. The vessel was accompanied by naval escorts provided by Denmark and Norway, as well as Syria, thus initiating the process of transfer of chemical materials from Syria to locations outside its territory for destruction at sea on board a US ship using hydrolysis. "The vessel has now left the port of Lattakia for international waters. It will remain at sea awaiting the arrival of additional priority chemical materials at the port. Maritime security is being provided by naval escorts from the People's Republic of China, Denmark, Norway and the Russian Federation," Kaag noted. She encouraged Syria to continue its efforts to complete the removal of chemical materials as soon as possible in a safe and timely manner, vowing that her Office, because of the complexity of the operation and the security situation in the country, will continue to assist Syria in fulfilling its obligations. She said she will continue to coordinate with Member States, in particular with Syria, to mobilize resources and undertake all the necessary steps towards the complete removal and elimination of the country's chemical weapons programme. Kaag is scheduled to brief the Security Council tomorrow Wednesday on the work of the Joint Mission. The Joint Mission of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and the United Nations said last week that the deadline set for December 31st to remove most critical chemical weapons material from Syria for destruction would be missed due to technical difficulties and severe weather conditions. Syria admitted it had tons of chemical weapons and agreed to get rid of them last spring after the US threatened Damascus to use a military strike following reports that the regime gassed over 1,400 civilians.