Russian weapons dismantling gear in Latakia

The Russian Ambassador here confirmed the arrival of Russian gear to be used in transport and dismantling of Syrian chemical weapons to the coastal city of Latakia. The ambassador told media here, Wednesday, an aerial bridge had been set up and 10 flights arranged to supply gear which would be used to secure the transfer of Syrian chemical weapons beyond the country's borders so far, with more flights to follow. An earlier statement by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said that Russia would send 65 trucks, as well as water tanks and other logistical supplies to the country. The most hazardous material is to be taken from the Port of Latakia to a location outside Syria to be dismantled and destroyed on a specially-equipped US warship. Head of the UN Mission for the Destruction of Syria's Chemical Weapons Sigrid Kaag had recently announced that chemical weapons would be transported from various Syrian regions to the port, and later transported by sea and ultimately destroyed on a special US vessel within a maximum of six months. Italy had meanwhile agreed to allow handling and transport of the material between the several vessels used in the operation in one of its ports. A joint UN-Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) mission is currently in Syria virtue of a UN Security Council resolution, which reported completion of the first stage in the operation, which involved dismantling and destroying chemical weapons production capacity. The mission aims to completely destroy the country's chemical stockpile by mid-2014.