France thanks the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) for its 10-plus years of tireless effort to shed light on the Bashar al-Assad regime's chemical program and the chemical attacks against the Syrian people for which he has been found responsible.
France is pleased by the progress that has been made on this issue, which must have concrete implications. In line with President Macron's remarks during his conversation with the Interim President of the Transition Authorities, Ahmed al-Sharaa, on February 5, and with those of the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs during his trip to Damascus on January 3, France will continue its efforts to facilitate cooperation between the Syrian authorities and the OPCW. A steadfast supporter of the OPCW's work on this issue (to which we contributed €1 million in 2024), we stand ready to provide concrete assistance to the OPCW in its effort to eliminate Syrian stockpiles.
The fall of the regime is a historic opportunity to finally eliminate Syria's chemical weapons.
France hails the cooperation we've seen with the new Syrian authorities who are making a positive effort on this issue, despite the complexity of the challenges they are facing, as the Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani noted during his March 5th speech at the 108th session of the OPCW's Executive Council in The Hague.
On the same occasion, the OPCW's Director-General announced that a technical team – the Declaration Assessment Team (DAT) – were preparing a mission to Syria to create a list of chemical weapons sites and stockpiles.
This mission should provide assistance to the Syrian authorities as they secure chemical weapons stockpiles and sites, an urgent necessity in order to avoid any risk of the diversion and spread of these weapons. It will also make it possible to begin work on an action plan aimed at the complete and verified destruction of the former regime's stockpiles.