Ambassador Đặng Đình Quý, Head of Vietnam Permanent Mission to the United Nations (UN).

Addressing the Informal Interactive Dialogue on chemical weapons in Syria held by the UN Security Council on May 12 in New York, the Vietnamese diplomat also asserted Việt Nam’s support for the full implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention, and activities of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in line with the convention.

Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu and the OPCW’s representatives informed the UN Security Council (UNSC) about cooperation on chemical weapons between the organisation and Syria.

All on-site activities as well as consultation sessions between the OPCW and Syria have been postponed due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, she said.

Members of the UNSC presented their views on an investigation and verification report on the use of chemical weapons in Syria issued on April 8.

Some countries mentioned the findings of the report that there are grounds to believe, but it cannot be ascertained, that the Syrian air force used chemical weapons in three separate attacks in Ltamenah in March 2017, while a number of countries dismissed the report. — VNS