Sweden contributes SEK 2,000,000 (approximately €180,000) to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons' (OPCW) investigation into chemical weapon use in Syria.
The contribution was formalised on 20 June 2024 in a signing ceremony held between the OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Fernando Arias, and the Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Sweden to the OPCW, H.E. Mr Johannes Oljelund, at the OPCW’s Headquarters in The Hague.
With this donation, the total support from Sweden to the Syrian funds of the OPCW reaches 1,7 million euro.
The contribution will support the full elimination of the Syrian Chemical Weapons Programme, as well as to establish facts surrounding the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria, in accordance with the Chemical Weapons Convention, relevant decisions of the policy-making organs of the OPCW and resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.
Ambassador Oljelund stated: “Our contribution is to support the OPCW in revealing the truth. The OPCW’s work in relation to Syria is essential to establish facts and to eliminate chemical weapons in Syria.”
The Director-General thanked Sweden for its unwavering support to the full implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention and stated: “I express my deep appreciation to Sweden for its financial and political support to the OPCW’s mission to permanently eradicate chemical weapons. This contribution will help the OPCW to continue its critical work in Syria.”
The use of chemical weapons constitutes a clear violation of international law. As a state party to the international convention on the prohibition of chemical weapons, CWC, Sweden works to preserve and strengthen the norm against the use of chemical weapons. The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, OPCW, ensures compliance with the CWC. Sweden supports the OPCW in its work to eliminate chemical weapons and prevent their spread and use.
Important work is going on to identify those responsible for the use of chemical weapons in Syria since 2013.
