Statement by H.E. Ambassador ISHIKANE Kimihiro, Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations at the Security Council Briefing on the situation in the Middle East (Syria chemical weapons)
2023/1/5
(As delivered)
I thank Mr. Ebo for his briefing.
Japan commends the professional and impartial work conducted by the OPCW and its Technical Secretariat.
The use of chemical weapons should never be tolerated anywhere, at any time, by anyone, under any circumstance. Those responsible for the use of chemical weapons must be held accountable.
It is regrettable that we have not seen concrete progress on this file, and the most recent report by the OPCW Director-General once again confirmed that “the declaration submitted by the Syrian Arab Republic still cannot be considered accurate and complete” .
Japan welcomes the joint statement delivered by the French delegation at the 27th Conference of the States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention last month. In the statement, 57 Member States, including Japan, jointly reiterated their call on Syria to resolve the numerous gaps and inconsistencies in its declaration and live up to its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention.
Japan urges Syria to fully comply with its obligations under both the Convention and Security Council Resolution 2118. The decision made by the twenty-fifth session of the Conference of the States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention should be taken seriously by Syria. Syria must engage in good faith with the OPCW Technical Secretariat and provide all required documents to solve the outstanding issues related to the initial and subsequent declarations submitted by Syria.
We regret that all efforts to hold the next round of consultations between the Declaration Assessment Team (DAT) and the Syrian National Authority have been unsuccessful during the past year. Syria should take the necessary steps to facilitate the holding of these consultations, and refrain from making further excuses to impede the entry of a DAT technical expert to its territory.
We welcome the Investigation and Identification Team (IIT) to continue its investigations, including that on the Douma incident in 2018. We sincerely hope their upcoming reports will lead to further clarification of the incidents of use of chemical weapons in Syria.
The use of chemical weapons in Syria poses a serious threat to international peace and security and to the global non-proliferation regime. Japan believes the Council should remain seized on this matter.
Japan commends the professional and impartial work conducted by the OPCW and its Technical Secretariat.
The use of chemical weapons should never be tolerated anywhere, at any time, by anyone, under any circumstance. Those responsible for the use of chemical weapons must be held accountable.
It is regrettable that we have not seen concrete progress on this file, and the most recent report by the OPCW Director-General once again confirmed that “the declaration submitted by the Syrian Arab Republic still cannot be considered accurate and complete” .
Japan welcomes the joint statement delivered by the French delegation at the 27th Conference of the States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention last month. In the statement, 57 Member States, including Japan, jointly reiterated their call on Syria to resolve the numerous gaps and inconsistencies in its declaration and live up to its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention.
Japan urges Syria to fully comply with its obligations under both the Convention and Security Council Resolution 2118. The decision made by the twenty-fifth session of the Conference of the States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention should be taken seriously by Syria. Syria must engage in good faith with the OPCW Technical Secretariat and provide all required documents to solve the outstanding issues related to the initial and subsequent declarations submitted by Syria.
We regret that all efforts to hold the next round of consultations between the Declaration Assessment Team (DAT) and the Syrian National Authority have been unsuccessful during the past year. Syria should take the necessary steps to facilitate the holding of these consultations, and refrain from making further excuses to impede the entry of a DAT technical expert to its territory.
We welcome the Investigation and Identification Team (IIT) to continue its investigations, including that on the Douma incident in 2018. We sincerely hope their upcoming reports will lead to further clarification of the incidents of use of chemical weapons in Syria.
The use of chemical weapons in Syria poses a serious threat to international peace and security and to the global non-proliferation regime. Japan believes the Council should remain seized on this matter.