Syrian Arab News Agency S A N A
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New York, SANA – The capability of ISIS terrorist organization to produce chemical weapons underscores the timeliness of the Russian initiative to draft an international convention on the struggle against acts of chemical and biological terrorism, Russia’s Ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin said addressed a session of the UN Security Council on Tuesday.
Churkin was quoted by TASS as saying “There has been evidence terrorists have access to chemical weapons production technologies and infrastructures.”
He added that “The availability of chemical weapons production facilities to the Islamic State [ISIS] and the risk of its proliferation about the whole region of the Middle East is a tangible argument illustrating the timeliness of the Russian initiative to draft international convention in the struggle against acts of chemical and biological terrorism.”
“The threat of chemical and biological terrorism is assuming an increasingly cross-border nature and the task of intensifying struggle against acts of terrorism is so high that UN Security Council Resolution 1540 aimed at preventing nuclear, chemical and biological weapons from falling into the hands of non-state actors has become insufficient,” Churkin said.
“It is obvious that the classical understanding of notions like arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation have been eroded step-by-step … assuming a new counter-terrorism measurement,” the Russian diplomat explained.
Churkin said Russia had suggested drafting a convention on struggle against acts of chemical and biological terrorism at the UN Disarmament Conference in Geneva in March this year.
Churkin added “It is necessary for the convention to fix a provision of criminalizing actions, which fall under its jurisdiction, to define jurisdictions, ensure a proper level of legal response, implement the principle of ‘either extradite or put to trial’, etc.”
R.J/H. Said
