Kenya as the President of the United Nations Security Council for the month of October 2021, chaired the briefing and consultations on the Middle East, specifically on the Syrian Arab Republic’s Chemical Weapons File on October 4, 2021.
Speaking at the briefing, Amb. Martin Kimani, Kenya’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations and President of the Council, underscored Kenya’s position on the use of chemical weapons saying that, “the use of chemical weapons constitutes a grave violation of international law and cannot be justified under any circumstance.”
“Kenya as a State Party to the Chemical Weapons Convention, reiterates its support for the mandate of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) as the technically competent International authority in its area of work,” the PR said.
He encouraged cooperation and engagement between the Syrian Arab Republic and the OPCW regarding the unresolved issues and underscored Kenya’s support on an inclusive Syrian-led and Syrian owned political process as the only avenue to a sustainable solution.
The Council was briefed by Ms. Izumi NAKAMITSU, the UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, with the representatives of both the Syrian Arab Republic and of Turkey participating under rule 37 of the Provisional Rules of Procedure.