OPCW: US to destruct part of Syrian chemicals at sea

The Hague based Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPWC) Saturday said it has offered the US for the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons which were decided to be removed from the country by the end of 2013. The Director General of OPCW Ahmet Uzumcu stated in a press release that the neutralisation operations will be conducted on a US vessel at sea using hydrolysis, and currently a suitable naval vessel is undergoing modifications to support the operations and to accommodate verification activities by the OPCW. ”Before we can launch any tender process we must be certain that we have sufficient funds available to meet the costs of destruction,” the Director General stated. Uzumcu also invited member states to consider providing in-kind contributions by contracting companies to conduct destruction activities, according to the statement. OPCW had determined November 1 as the target date for eliminating all chemical weapons production facilities in Syria. The organisation also aims at destroying all types of chemical weapons in the country by the end of June 2014.