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OPCW Declaration Assessment Team in Syria impeding dossier’s closure — diplomat

According to Alexander Shulgin, this is being done in the interests of Western countries in order to achieve their goal of changing the Syrian regime one way or another

MOSCOW, March 21. /TASS/. The OPCW Declaration Assessment Team is getting in the way of closing the Syrian chemical dossier, Russian Permanent Representative to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and Russian Ambassador to the Netherlands Alexander Shulgin said on Tuesday.

"The Syrians hoped that the OPCW Assessment Team would help Damascus correct inconsistencies, discrepancies and gaps to close the dossier as soon as possible, but, as a matter of fact, the Team, instead of helping the Syrians, is creating obstacles for the dossier’s closure," he said. "As a result, the number of outstanding issues is not decreasing but is actually increasing."

According to Shulgin, this is being done in the interests of Western countries. "They want to achieve their goal of changing the Syrian regime one way or another. The military way has failed, so, they are trying to find roundabout ways and the Syrian chemical program, in particular, Syria’s initial declarations, is being used as an instrument of pressure on Syria," he stressed.