Deputy Foreign and Expatriates Minister Dr. Fayssal Mikdad stressed that Syria didn’t and will not use chemical weapons and it is adhered to achieving international peace and security despite all threats by terrorist organizations and their backers.

Mikdad’s remarks came during a symposium on a book titled “Syria and the Chemicals With Facts and Documents” by MP Dr. Ahmad Abdul-Salam Mar’ai which was held after the signing ceremony of the book at al-Assad National Library on Sunday evening.

Mikdad heads the National Committee on Implementing Syria’s Commitments according to Convention on Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

He affirmed  that Syria’s decision to join the convention was made freely and willfully in framework of its sovereignty, independence and response to the developments of situations in Syria, the  region and the world.

The Deputy Foreign and Expatriates Minister indicated that the Russian Federation is acting with full responsibility to preserve the international peace and security contrary to the recklessness of some Western states.

Mikdad added that using white phosphor by the US few days ago in Deir Ezzor is another evidence on that the current US administration and the previous administrations don’t prevent from using any weapon that might serve their interests.

He noted that US President Donald Trump’s announcement of his determination to withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia, which was signed since the era of the Soviet Union,  will cause new  armament race that would threaten peace and security between the two major states, and would mainly harm the European states.

For his part, Dr. Mar’ai said that his book comes as a modest contribution to disclosing the facts in the face of the misleading campaign which targets Syria through the aggression against it since 2011, particularly with regard to accusing it of using chemical weapons.

He added that the book discusses the legal side of that file and the essence of the general rules to join the international conventions, in addition to the efforts exerted by Syria for freeing the Middle East from the mass destruction weapons.

Dr. Mar’ai said that the book draws a conclusion that Syria fully adhered to the obligations of the Convention on Prohibition of Chemical Weapons due to its belief in the equality in sovereignty for the states and in the support and respect of the joint collective values of the international community such as the international peace and security and others.