Syria, Russia slammed at chemical weapons watchdog meeting

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — Syria and its close ally Russia face harsh criticism at a meeting of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons following an investigation that blamed Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime for a sarin attack that killed about 100 people in April.

At a closed-doors meeting of the chemical weapons watchdog’s executive council, US representative Kenneth D. Ward says Russia “continues to deny the truth and, instead, collaborates with the Assad regime in a deplorable attempt to discredit” the joint UN-OPCW investigation.

Russia has denounced the results of the investigation into the Khan Sheikhoun attack and vetoed a UN Security Council resolution to renew the mandate of the Joint Investigative Mechanism, known as the JIM, which expires this month.

The OPCW has a team called Fact Finding Mission, which investigates whether chemical weapons have been used in Syria. The JIM was set up by the Security Council to apportion blame for such attacks.

— AP