The United Nations Security Council adopted unanimously in New York on Friday night, a resolution on Syria’s chemical weapons. The vote is a major diplomatic breakthrough taking into consideration that it’s the first resolution adopted by the Council since the Syrian conflict started in March 2011. On three different occasions, Moscow and Beijing representatives have made use of the veto towards the resolutions.
“Tonight, the international community has fulfilled its mission,” said after the vote of the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. “It is Syria’s first sign of hope after long a long time,” he added. Ban confirmed that in mid-November there will be held a peace conference for Syria called “Geneva 2”.
US President Barack Obama said on Friday, before the Council meeting, that the agreement on a UN resolution on Syria’s chemical arsenal destruction is “a huge victory for the international community.”
Also on Friday evening, US Secretary of State John Kerry warned that there will be “consequences” for the Syrian regime if they will not comply with the Security Council’s resolution on the elimination of its chemical weapons.
In turn, the French Foreign Minister, Laurent Fabius, commented: “Finally, the Security Council deserves its name” after the UN adopted a resolution that requires Syria to destroy its chemical weapons arsenal.
The Resolution 2118, which falls under the US-Russian plan to destroy the Syrian arsenal was adopted unanimously and provides recourse to sanction Damascus if the regime refuses the application of the act.
Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem has declared early this month on a Russian state television that Syria is committed to the Russian initiative of handing over the weapons. He declared: “We want to join the convention on the prohibition of chemical weapons. We are ready to observe our obligations in accordance with that convention, including providing all information about these weapons”. Also in another statement he added: “We are ready to declare the location of the chemical weapons, stop production of the chemical weapons, and show these facilities to representatives of Russia and other United Nations member states”.
photo: www.telegraph.co.uk
