Joint Statement of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov and the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of the Syrian Arab Republic Faisal Mekdad pertaining to the Issues of the Chemical Weapons Convention

Unofficial translation

The heads of foreign ministries of France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States have issued a statement that contradicts the reality with regard to the provocation of 7 April 2018 involving the use of chlorine, which was staged in the Syrian town of Douma by the pseudo-humanitarian "White Helmets" NGO affiliated with the Syrian armed opposition. Thus, they have demonstrated support for the report published on 27 January 2023 by the Investigation and Identification Team (IIТ), a body imposed on the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) by the "collective West", on the chemical attack allegedly carried out by the Syrian Air Forces against the civilian population of the town and "abetted" by Russia.

We consider this statement, which reproduces groundless accusations against Syria of the use of chemical weapons, as another step to build up comprehensive pressure on our countries. We believe that the publication of yet another falsified report on the provocation involving the use of chemical weapons in Douma is but another attempt to whitewash the act of tripartite aggression, committed by France, the United Kingdom and the United States on 14 April 2018 against sovereign Syria by launching a missile strike on the Syrian civilian and military infrastructure in violation of the UN Charter and universally recognized norms of international law.

We recall in this regard that the IIT was established in violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). Despite the enormous pressure exerted by Western countries, less than half of the States Parties to the CWC voted in favour of its establishment.

The ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and the Syrian Arab Republic reaffirm that the abovementioned statement of "the four" is yet another proof of the hostile intentions of these States towards our two countries, as well as of their destructive policy aimed at spurring up new crises in the Middle East and across the globe.

Russia and Syria deny the unfounded accusations made against them, condemn this other deceitful statement by France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States, and reaffirm their strong rejection of the policy pursued by these countries, which aims to substitute the UN Charter and universally recognized norms of international law with the so-called "rules-based order" granting NATO and EU countries dominance in determining basic parameters of the political, economic, scientific, technical, humanitarian as well as moral and ethical development of the human civilization.

It is also worth recalling that so far the United States remains the only chemical weapons possessor State which, despite all the financial and technological capabilities at its disposal, is doing its best to slow down the process of its own chemical demilitarization.

Russia and Syria once again reaffirm that the use of chemical weapons by anyone, anywhere and under any pretext is categorically unacceptable.