Russia destroys 3 quarters of its chemical weapons stockpiles

Russia has destroyed over three quarters of its chemical weapons stockpiles, a Russian official said Tuesday. "We've got a year of busy work ahead to destroy 100 percent of chemical weapons in Russia," said Mikhail Babich, chairman of Russia's State Commission on Chemical Disarmament. Russia currently has destroyed 77 percent of its 40,000-ton chemical weapons stockpiles inherited from the Soviet Union, he was quoted as saying by Interfax news agency. Moscow ratified the Chemical Weapons Convention in 1997 and started destruction work in December 2002. Chemical weapons are being destroyed at six special sites with the seventh under construction. After all stockpiles are destroyed, those facilities will be converted for peaceful use, said the official. Russia and the United States are set to complete destruction of their chemical arsenals by the end of 2015.