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Letter dated 29 April 2019 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the Security Council - Progress in the elimination of the Syrian chemical weapons programme (S/2019/355) [EN/AR]

Countries
Syria
Sources
UN SC
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I have the honour to transmit herewith the sixty-seventh monthly report of the Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), submitted pursuant to paragraph 12 of Security Council resolution 2118 (2013) (see annex). The report of the Director-General covers the period from 24 March to 23 April 2019.

The twenty-first round of technical consultations between the Declaration Assessment Team of OPCW and representatives of the Syrian Arab Republic was held in the Syrian Arab Republic from 10 to17 April 2019.

During the consultations, some of the outstanding issues related to the initial declaration of the Syrian Arab Republic were discussed and field visits to the former chemical weapons production facilities were conducted to collect samples to be sent for analysis to OPCW-designated laboratories. Additionally, in the framework of these consultations, the Head of the Declaration Assessment Team discussed with the Head of the Syrian National Authority the activities and progress of the Declaration Assessment Team.

I look forward to the report of the OPCW Technical Secretariat on the analysis of all the information collected during the above-mentioned round of consultations and I hope that the structured dialogue agreed between the Technical Secretariat of OPCW and the Syrian Arab Republic contributes to achieving progress on all chemical weapons-related issues.

As I have stated previously, the use of chemical weapons is abhorrent, and impunity for their use is inexcusable. It is therefore imperative to identify and hold accountable all those who have used chemical weapons. Unity in the Security Council is fundamental to achieve this urgent obligation.

(Signed) António Guterres