Russia vetoes UN investigation into chemical attacks in Syria
On Tuesday October 24, Russia vetoed the draft resolution put forward by the US for voting in the UN Security Council which proposes an extension of the mandate to investigate cases of chemical weapons usage in Syria, Deutche Welle reports.
Another Security Council member – China – refrained from voting.
These incidents are being investigated by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) – UN Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) formed in 2013.
The mission’s mandate expires in the middle of November. The last of its planned reports is expected to be presented on October 26.
The OPCW-UN JIM was established in response to the Syrian government’s decision to destroy its chemical weapon reserves and production facilities. Later, when this process was completed, the JIM’s mandate was extended. The JIM’s task was to establish concrete facts about the use of chemical weaponry, and determine the entities responsible.
In August 2016, the JIM accused both the Syrian government and Islamic State terrorists of using chemical weapons between 2014 and 2015. According to the report published by the JIM at the time, soldiers subordinate to Damascus used Chlorine at least three times, and ISIS terrorists used mustard gas.
At a UN Security Council session on August 30, 2016, Russia refused to acknowledge the facts set forward in the report. The Syrian government also denied the accusations.