04.12 NATO Offers Help in Removing Syria's Chemical Weapons

BRUSSELS, December 4 (RIA Novosti) – NATO will aid the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in its ongoing effort to remove Syria's stockpile of poisonous gases, if a request for assistance is made, the head of the Atlantic alliance said Wednesday.

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen made the remarks following a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council in Brussels.

“We welcome all support provided by the NATO-Russia Council member states to the OPCW-UN Joint Mission and stand ready to consider further assistance to the OPCW-UN Joint Mission if requested,” NATO said in a statement on its website.

Russia and the United States agreed a plan in September for the disposal of Syria’s chemical weapons stockpiles after a series of alleged chemical attacks by government forces on civilians.