Syria chemicals destruction to begin in late January

According to insider sources, the ship will reach an Italian port ten days after leaving its Norfolk base in the US state of Virginia and will be moored outside the haven.

The vessel has been outfitted with two hydraulic systems that will be used to render Syrian chemicals harmless. A third hydraulic system will be switched on in case any of the active two breaks down.

Earlier it was reported that the United States could begin the at-sea elimination of Syria’s most hazardous chemical-warfare materials before February, mass media quoted the head of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons as saying on Tuesday.

The US Defense Department in early December unveiled a proposal to neutralize “hundreds of tons” of Syrian chemical-warfare materials on the transport vessel MV Cape Ray. Syrian President Bashar Assad acknowledged the chemical arsenal and agreed to its destruction after an August nerve-gas attack raised the possibility of US military intervention against his regime.

“We hope that by the end of January, the destruction on the American ship could start,” OPCW Director General Ahmet Üzümcü said while in Oslo, Norway, to accept the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize for his organization.

He added: “Much will depend in fact on the security situation and unfortunately the security situation has deteriorated over the past weeks. Some roads were not accessible.”

Meeting in Moscow on transfer of chemical weapons from Syria

Representatives of Russia, the US, China and the UN are to discuss details of providing safe transportation of chemical weapons from Syria at a meeting in Moscow behind closed doors on Friday.

Director of the Department for Security Affairs and Disarmament of the Russian Foreign Ministry Mikhail Ulianov told Interfax that the participants will discuss practical issues. The weapons will be transported across the Syrian territorial waters and Russia and China proposed to provide safety.

Mikhail Ulianov said that high military commanders from Russia, China and the US, as well as representatives of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and Syria will be taking part in the meeting.

Mikhail Ulianov pointed out that Russia is prepared to provide safety at sea while chemical weapons are being loaded. He said that the ‘maintenance of safety mission’ has been discussed with Syria, and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has been informed.

Russia, China to ensure safety of chemical weapons shipments from Syria – Foreign Ministry

Russia and China will insure the safe loading and transportation of chemical weapons in Syria’s territorial waters, Mikhail Ulyanov, deputy head of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Department for Security and Disarmament, said on Wednesday.

“We have undertaken to provide the safe loading of chemicals onto Dutch and Norwegian container ships and ensure their safe passage through Syria’s territorial waters. We will do it in cooperation with our Chinese partners… It’s the first situation when Russian and Chinese military will be performing their professional tasks should to shoulder during a real crisis, not army drills,” Ulyanov said.

Militants’ raids on chemical weapons storage sites look like preplanned action – Russia

Attacks by Syrian militants on chemical weapons storage facilities look like a pre-planned, determined action, Mikhail Ulyanov, deputy head of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Department for Security and Disarmament, said on Wednesday.

“There have been frequent attacks by militants on chemical weapons storage sites lately. One gets the impression that this is a determined effort aimed at disrupting the operation,” he said.

Those raids are a challenge to Damascus and the entire international community as well as to decisions made by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the United Nations Security Council, the official said.

The bulk of Syria’s chemical arsenals will be taken out of the country and loaded on ships presumably in January, according to Ulyanov. He did not rule out transportation delays due to security risks.

Militants may attempt to ambush and attack chemical arms convoys, he said, adding that countries that have influence over Syrian rebels should do their best to dissuade them from any such moves.

Russia to donate $2 mln in aid for Syria’s chemical disarmament

Russia will transfer $2 million to the United Nations in aid for Syria’s chemical disarmament within a week, Mikhail Ulyanov, deputy head of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Department for Security and Disarmament, told reporters.

“Till the end of December, we will transfer $2 million to a voluntary UN fund. We have initially meant to transfer the money to a special fund set up by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons [OPCW]. But then it turned out that the OPCW fund would be used to finance the destruction of the chemicals only after their removal from Syria, so a special UN fund was created to cover the costs of the initial stage of the operation, namely their transportation through the Syrian territory,” the official said.

Russian Navy ships to accompany vessels carrying Syrian chemical weapons

Ships of the Mediterranean unit of the Russian Navy will be accompanying vessels transporting Syrian chemical weapons to their destinations, a high-ranking Russian armed forces official has said on Tuesday.

At the moment, the unit comprises the missile cruiser Petr Velikiy (the North Fleet), the guided missile destroyer Smetlivy (the Black Sea Fleet), four large landing ships – Yamal (the Black Sea Fleet), Pobeditel (the North Fleet), Aleksandr Shabalin (the Baltic Fleet).

“The decision to deploy a ship for a particular goal will be made later basing on a situation in the Mediterranean Sea. The decision will be made by the General Staff’s head after the Navy’s Commander-In-Chief report,” a source said.

Int’l meeting on elimination of Syrian chemical arms to be held in Moscow

Russia will host an international meeting on Friday to discuss the elimination of Syria’s chemical weapons, said Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov.

Experts from Russia, United States, United Nations, Syria and UN’s chemical arms watchdog are set to meet in Moscow on December 27 to discuss destruction of Syrian chemical arsenal. This is according to the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Read more: http://voiceofrussia.com/news/2013_12_26/Syria-chemicals-destruction-to-begin-past-mid-January-1544/