MOSCOW, April 14. /ITAR-TASS/. Secretary General of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Ahmet Üzümcü urged six countries (Angola, Egypt, Israel, DPRK, Myanmar and South Sudan), which haven’t joined the Chemical Weapons Convention yet, to do this as soon as possible.

“Using chemical weapons contradicts international norms and standards,” Üzümcü pointed out.

“I call on six countries that haven’t joined the Convention yet to do this as soon as possible,” the organization’s secretary general said. He added that he recently sent a letter to foreign ministers of these countries, in which he “urged to consider the issue of joining the Convention”.

 

Russia achieves substantial success in eliminating chemical weapons' stockpiles

Ahmet Üzümcü noted that Russia has achieved substantial success in eliminating stockpiles of chemical weapons, when speaking at a lecture in the Moscow State Institute of International Relations

"Russia and USA are doing their best to achieve the implementation of plans regarding the elimination of chemical weapons," OPCW secretary general stressed. "Russia has eliminated up to 78% of the stockpiles available in the country," he noted. "This is a substantial success given the complexity of this operation." The OPCW secretary general added that he looked forward to visiting a Russian facility for eliminating chemical weapons on Thursday.