Chemical weapons inspector restores voting rights in Syria, citing progress | Material Issues

Syria will regain voting rights in the OPCW as the new leadership moves forward to deal with its weapons.

The world’s arms watchdog has announced that it has granted the right to vote in Syria because “sustainable measures” have been taken to deal with the crisis since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government.

In a statement published on Thursday, the Organization for the Prohibition of Weapons (OPCW) he said this decision follows “significant changes” in the situation since Syria was suspended in 2021. This was due to the failure of the previous government to declare both its chemical weapons program and the repeated use of lethal gas during the civil war.

Since the lightning ousted the long-time ruler al-Assad in 2024, “the new Syrian government has committed itself to the implementation of Syria’s obligations under the Convention and has since taken steps to cooperate with the Technical Secretariat to achieve this goal”.

Actions by the new government of President Ahmed al-Sharaa include streamlining verification operations and taking early action to destroy identified remnants.

“These elections demonstrate the tangible progress made as a result of continued collaboration and constructive cooperation between the Technical Secretariat and the Syrian Arab Republic, with the support of the majority of States Parties,” said OPCW Director-General Fernando Arias.

In 2013, Syria joined the OPCW and it was agreed that his weapons should be destroyed so that he could be watched by the guards. At the time, Syria believed it had about 1,000 tons of poison and agreed to destroy it in a deal with Russia and the US that was designed to keep US forces out of its territory.

Syria’s decision followed an international outcry over a suspected chemical attack that took place the same year in Ghouta, an area east of the capital Damascus.

US intelligence comparison that at least 1,400 people, including 426 children, were killed in the attack which he said was “great confidence” in the Syrian government. Al-Assad refused to take part and blamed the terrorists.

According to the OPCW, when Syria made the initial announcement of its chemical weapons program, the former government did not disclose the full extent of its chemical weapons program and tried to mislead inspectors about its size and scope.