Key Facts
- Program start date
- 14 September 2013
- Chemical agents destroyed at sea
- 600 metric tons
- Sea destruction duration
- 42 days aboard MV Cape Ray
- OPCW completion declaration
- 4 January 2016
- UN Security Council resolution
- Resolution 2118, adopted 27 September 2013
Strategic Narrative Overview
OPCW inspectors began preliminary assessments on 1 October 2013, with active destruction starting on 6 October. Syrian personnel dismantled munitions and mixing facilities, completing equipment destruction by the 31 October 2013 deadline. Stockpile removal fell behind schedule; the last declared chemicals left Syria only on 23 June 2014. The most hazardous agents were neutralised aboard the US vessel Cape Ray at sea. By 18 August 2014, all surrendered chemicals had been destroyed offshore.
01 / The Origins
The 21 August 2013 Ghouta chemical-weapon attacks, attributed to Syrian government forces, brought the United States and France to the brink of military strikes against Syria. To avert intervention, the United States and Russia brokered the Framework for Elimination of Syrian Chemical Weapons on 14 September 2013. Syria simultaneously acceded to the Chemical Weapons Convention, triggering an OPCW-led process to eliminate its declared stockpiles under international oversight.
03 / The Outcome
The OPCW declared destruction complete on 4 January 2016. However, subsequent investigations confirmed ongoing Syrian military use of chemical weapons, including sarin at Khan Shaykhun in April 2017 and a chemical attack on Douma in April 2018. Undeclared sarin and VX traces found at an uninspected military site in 2015, and a late-disclosed ricin programme, cast doubt on the completeness of Syria's original declaration.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
3 belligerents