World

US Asks UNSC to Vote on Resolution for Chemical Weapons Probe Mechanism - Source

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The United States has requested a UN Security Council vote on Wednesday on a draft resolution to establish a mechanism for investigating cases of chemical weapons use in Syria, diplomatic sources said.
Sputnik

The diplomats told reporters on Wednesday that the United States has asked the UN Security Council to hold a vote on the draft resolution at 3:00 p.m. EST (8:00 p.m. GMT).

Later in the day, a UN diplomatic source told Sputnik that there will be two documents for the vote - rival resolutions on the establishment of new United Nations Independent Mechanism of Investigation (UNIMI), another one set for the vote by Russia.

The Netherlands Permanent Representative to the United Nations Karel van Oosterom told reporters that experts were working with all UN Security Council members late on Tuesday on the draft resolution text and there is hope the measure will be adopted on Wednesday.

The requests was made amid OPCW's announcement about their intention to deploy experts in Syria to investigate alleged use of chemical weapons on the ground.

READ MORE: OPCW to Send Experts to Syrian Douma to Probe Alleged Chemical Weapons Use

The request comes after recent reports emerged about an alleged chemical weapons attack in Syria, published by Syrian opposition online news portals on April 7, claiming that a chemical attack took place in Syria in the city of Douma near Damascus. Reacting to the reports, the United States and the European Union said Syrian government of President Bashar Assad were behind the attack.

READ MORE: Trump Slams Putin, Iran for Backing "Animal Assad" Amid Chemical Attack Claims

Responding to these accusations, Syrian officials, as cited by the Syrian state-run news agency SANA, called the claims a provocation carried out by the Jaysh al-Islam terror group and other militants to hinder the advance of the Syrian Army.

READ MORE: Trump's Shot Against Iran Over Alleged Chem Attack in Syria Hypocritical - Zarif

Despite plans to pull out the forces from Syria, US President Donald Trump stated on Monday that he would make a decision over the next 24 to 48 hours on the United States' possible response to the alleged chemical weapons attack in Douma. The White House also said that it was considering all options regarding a potential US response.

The same day, the Russian Center for Syrian Reconciliation said the Russian military and medical experts had inspected the site of the alleged attack and found no traces of toxic agents or victims with symptoms of chemical poisoning.

Discuss