Ban calls for destruction of Syria chemical arms
AFP September 10, 2013, 2:17 am
UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - UN leader Ban Ki-moon on Monday called for the creation of UN supervised zones in Syria where the country's chemical weapons can be destroyed.
Ban told reporters he may propose the zones to the UN Security Council if UN inspectors confirm the use of the banned weapons and in a bid to overcome the 15-nation council's "embarrassing paralysis" over the Syria conflict.
"I am considering urging the Security Council to demand the immediate transfer of Syria's chemical weapons and chemical precursor stocks to places inside Syria where they can be safely stored and destroyed," Ban said.
His announcement came after Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov urged Syria to place its chemical weapons under international supervision to head off the threat of a western military strike.
Ban welcomed the Russian idea and said Syria should "agree to these proposals" and added that there would be "very swift action" by the international community to make sure the stocks are destroyed.
But Ban warned that "first and foremost Syria must agree positively to this."
