BEIJING, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- China said on Friday it was satisfied with the progress being made in destroying chemical weapons in Syria and applauded all parties' efforts.
The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) confirmed Thursday that Syria has destroyed critical equipment for all of its declared chemical weapons production facilities and mixing/filling plants, in line with a Nov. 1 deadline.
The OPCW said it had inspected 21 of the 23 sites declared by Syria, and 39 of the 41 facilities located at those sites.
The OPCW Director General Ahmet Uzumcu has submitted a report to the organization's executive council, which reflects Syria's efforts toward implementation of the OPCW decision on dismantling the chemical weapons and gives a full account of the organization's verification work in Syria, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a daily news briefing.
The executive council will map out a detailed destruction plan for the next stage after deliberating on the report, Hua said. "We are expecting all parties to work in a constructive manner to make a pragmatic plan at an early date."
"China is willing to work with all parties to facilitate a comprehensive and effective implementation of the OPCW decision and contribute to the political solution of the Syria issue," Hua said.
The next deadline is Nov. 15 when the council has to adopt a detailed plan submitted by Syria to destroy the country's more than 1,000 tons of chemical weapons by mid-2014.
Related:
Syria chemical weapons production equipment destroyed
DAMASCUS, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- The joint mission of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and the United Nations confirmed Thursday that the Syrian government has completed the functional destruction of critical equipments for all of its declared chemical weapons production facilities and mixing and filling plants, rendering them inoperable.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the OPCW said Syria has met the deadline set by the OPCW Executive Council to "complete as soon as possible and in any case not later than 1 November 2013, the destruction of chemical weapons production equipments, including mixing and filling equipments."Full story
Chinese experts to join chemical weapon destruction mission in Syria
BEIJING, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- Two anti-chemical experts from the Chinese army will take part in a mission in Syria focusing on the destruction and verification of Syrian chemical weapons.
Defense Ministry spokesman Yang Yujun made the comments at a monthly press briefing on Thursday. Full story
Verification completed at 21 chemical weapons sites in Syria
UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said that, as of Monday, its inspectors in the OPCW-UN Joint Mission in Syria had completed verification activities at 21 of the 23 chemical weapons related sites declared by Syria. Full story
