syria\s chemical weapons shrouded in secrecy
Last Updated : GMT 05:17:37
Emiratesvoice, emirates voice
Emiratesvoice, emirates voice
Last Updated : GMT 05:17:37
Emiratesvoice, emirates voice

Syria\'s chemical weapons shrouded in secrecy

Emiratesvoice, emirates voice

Emiratesvoice, emirates voice Syria\'s chemical weapons shrouded in secrecy

Washington - AFP

Syria\'s chemical weapons stockpile, which Damascus has acknowledged for the first time, is decades old and among the biggest in the Middle East, but experts are divided over its exact nature. President Bashar al-Assad\'s regime caused a global uproar Monday when it vowed to use its chemical weapons if attacked by outsiders, although not against its own people. But public data about the stockpile is scarce, as Syria is one of the few countries that has not signed the Chemical Weapons Convention. Damascus has however signed the Geneva protocol, which bars the first use of chemical and biological weapons, though it does not make stipulations about production, storage and transfer. \"We are closely following information about Syria... but we can\'t say more without sending inspectors on the ground,\" Michael Luhan, a spokesman for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, told AFP. Intelligence services also have little to say on the subject. \"Syria\'s well-established chemical warfare program includes a stockpile of nerve agent, which can be delivered by aircraft or ballistic missiles,\" Defense Intelligence Agency chief Lieutenant General Ronald Lee Burgess said in March 2011 testimony before a Senate panel. \"Syria continues to seek chemical warfare-related precursors and expertise from foreign sources.\" Syria is stockpiling \"hundreds of tons\" of various chemical agents, according to Leonard Spector of the Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies. \"Their panoply of chemical agents is quite robust,\" said Olivier Lepick of the Foundation for Strategic Research think tank in Paris. \"They have successfully mastered the synthesis of organophosphorus compounds -- the latest, most efficient and most toxic generation of chemical weapons.\" This family of compounds includes sarin and VX nerve agents, as well as older agents such as mustard gas, a mix of sulfur dioxide and ethylene. Syria\'s program was launched in the 1970s with help from Egypt and later from the former Soviet Union. In the 1990s, Russia lent a hand, followed by Iran since at least 2005, according to the independent Nuclear Threat Initiative. The Scientific Research Council in Damascus appears to be directing the Syrian chemical weapons program, the NTI said. The US Congressional Research Service pointed to accessible information suggesting that the production and storage of nerve gas and mustard gas is concentrated in and around the cities of Al-Safira (southeast of Aleppo), Damascus, Hama, Homs and Latakia. Delivery vehicles include Scud ballistic missiles and launch systems, along with aerial bombs and shells, according to publicly-available information. However, \"there is not sufficient information in open sources to draw any conclusions about the security of Syria\'s CW arsenal,\" the NTI warned.

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

syria\s chemical weapons shrouded in secrecy syria\s chemical weapons shrouded in secrecy

 



Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

syria\s chemical weapons shrouded in secrecy syria\s chemical weapons shrouded in secrecy

 



GMT 09:54 2018 Wednesday ,24 January

'Friendly and kind' N. Korean skaters

GMT 09:36 2017 Thursday ,07 December

Heidy Karam’s contract to present talk show close

GMT 10:50 2012 Friday ,20 January

Dusty weather expected in UAE on Friday

GMT 09:35 2018 Saturday ,13 January

New Zealand bat first in third ODI against Pakistan

GMT 10:48 2017 Saturday ,23 December

Meryl Streep's brand under threat

GMT 06:53 2017 Thursday ,11 May

17th Doha Forum To Begin Sunday

GMT 10:30 2017 Thursday ,23 November

Reports underline proliferation of weapons in Arab world

GMT 07:46 2017 Monday ,30 October

Catch it early, treat it early and move on

GMT 08:05 2015 Tuesday ,17 February

Conan O'Brien is first late night host to film in Cuba

GMT 16:17 2018 Thursday ,30 August

Five Saudi women pilots granted GACA licences
 
 Emirates Voice Facebook,emirates voice facebook  Emirates Voice Twitter,emirates voice twitter Emirates Voice Rss,emirates voice rss  Emirates Voice Youtube,emirates voice youtube  Emirates Voice Youtube,emirates voice youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

emiratesvoieen emiratesvoiceen emiratesvoiceen emiratesvoiceen
emiratesvoice emiratesvoice emiratesvoice
emiratesvoice
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
emiratesvoice, Emiratesvoice, Emiratesvoice