Delivered By Mr. Rashed Azzam, Attaché

UNOFFICIAL TRANSLATION

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Madam President,

I thank Ms. Izumi Nakamitsu for her briefing today.

I would like to reiterate the UAE’s its explicit rejection and condemnation of the use of chemical weapons by anyone, anywhere, under any circumstances. Their use constitutes a flagrant violation of the provisions of the Chemical Weapons Convention and international law.

In the absence of tangible progress on the chemical weapons file in Syria, I must once again repeat what the UAE said about this file in our previous meetings:

We believe that maintaining dialogue between the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and Syria remains crucial to making progress on this file, but this dialogue must be conducted in a constructive manner. This also includes discussing all available means for holding the twenty-fifth round of consultations and overcoming its obstacles.

Meanwhile, we stress that the threats of chemical terrorism are concerns that cannot be overlooked and must be given sufficient attention. This is critical as Da’esh continues its terrorist attacks and does not hesitate to use any means to achieve its goals, which pose a serious threat to the security and stability of Syria and the entire region.

In this context, we express our concern about the attacks that Da’esh continues to launch in northeastern Syria, in addition to its efforts to rebuild its capabilities and networks, recruit fighters, and release its members from prisons. We stress the need to continue combating this terrorist group, and to ensure that it does not acquire dangerous and deadly weapons.

In conclusion, the UAE again reiterates the importance of making tangible progress in the Syria chemical weapons file, as well as in all other files related to resolving the Syrian crisis.

Thank you, Madam President.