UK Edition
UK overcomes Russian resistance to strengthen OPCW chemical weapons watchdog
Britain and its Western allies overcame fierce Russian opposition on Wednesday to give the world’s chemical weapons watchdog new powers to place blame for chemical attacks.
Until now the Organisation for the Prevention of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) has been able to investigate the technical details of an attack but could not point the finger at the parties responsible.
But after a diplomatic showdown at a special OPCW conference in the Hague, the UK rallied enough votes to strengthen the agency’s mandate and from now on it can attribute responsibility. The British motion passed 82-24.
“Chemical weapons are an affront to human dignity and have no place in the 21st century. The international community has quite rightly come together today to strengthen the ban on chemical weapons and prevent impunity for their use,” said Boris Johnson, the foreign secretary.
“The UK has led the diplomatic efforts to secure this action. We look forward to working with all countries who are members of the Chemical Weapons Convention to implement the decisions taken today, and we will continue to push back on any efforts to undermine the ban on these vile weapons.”
The move was strongly opposed by Russia, which allegedly used the nerve agent novichok in Salisbury to poison former former Russian spy Sergei Skripal, and the Syrian regime, which is accused of repeatedly gassing civilians.
In both cases, the OPCW investigated and concluded that illegal chemical weapons were used but was unable to make any allegations about who was responsible.
The Russian embassy in the Netherlands angrily denounced the move, saying the UK had failed to present “any hard evidence” of Russian involvement in the Skripal poisoning.
“They embroiled their allies in the blatant campaign against Russia. Now they try to drag the OPCW in their games,” the embassy said on Twitter.
Iran, which is fighting in Syria on the same side as Russia and the Assad regime, also joined in the opposition at the Hague conference. The three governments launched a series of delaying procedural moves but were ultimately unable to stop the vote from going ahead.
Western diplomats have suggested that Russia could leave the OPCW in protest but it is not clear what Moscow’s next steps will be.
Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, a chemical weapons expert who works with humanitarian NGOs in Syria, said the change at the OPCW was “hugely important” as states would be less likely to use chemical weapons if they knew they would face international blame.
“The lack of action following extensive use of chemical weapons in Syria in the last five years has normalised their use. Now every dictator, despot, rogue state and terror group feel they can use these horrendous weapons with impunity. This vote will go a long way on re-establishing the 100 year taboo on use of chemical weapons.”