Russia lambasts US for preserving chemical weapons; asks to follow examples set by Moscow

Russia again took the opportunity to attack the United States in the UN General Assembly by asking the Biden administration to eliminate the stockpiles of its chemical weapons. Notably, Moscow destroyed one of the world's largest chemical weapons arsenals in 2017-- three years ahead of the deadline set by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapon. The last chemical weapons were destroyed on September 27, and the same was verified and confirmed by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

While raising serious questions over the intention of the US, Russian Deputy Representative on Disarmament at the UN First Committee Konstantin Vorontsov called on the Biden administration and other countries to "follow suit" and destroy the arsenals of such weapons. "You know that we inherited the world’s largest arsenal of this type of weapons of mass destruction, and we have coped with the task of eliminating it in a worthy manner, thereby once again reiterating Russia’s commitment to strict observance of its obligations under international treaties," he said.

The Russian diplomat called Russia's action "a historic milestone for the entire international community" and affirmed Moscow has always followed the guidelines set by the UN organisations. "We call on all other countries who are still possessing chemical weapons to follow Russia’s lead without delay. That concerns, first and foremost, the country that initiated the convention, which has always been the most active proponent of its ideas when it came to other countries and now, for some reason, it continues to be the largest possessor of chemical weapons," Yermakov noted.

America vows to destroy all chemical weapons by 2023

Further, he took a dig at the US and said the administration always attempts to cast a shadow on big achievements of other countries and names Syria as the victim of US propaganda. Meanwhile, reacting to the questions raised by the Russian diplomat, his US counterpart, Robert Wood affirmed that the administration will destroy its remaining chemical stocks by the next year. Also, he recalled how America had helped Moscow in the elimination of the chemical weapons program by allocating $1 bln for the purpose.

Image: AP