Syria: Seizing the international moment

This briefing argues that the international community should use the process of Syria's accession to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) as a catalyst for a broader, holistic approach to weapons of mass destruction (WMD) disarmament, specifically within the Middle East.

• Syria is expected to accede to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) on 14 October 2013, which would legally prohibit the state and civil society from manufacturing, stockpiling, or using chemical weapons. Under a Russia-US agreed plan from 14 September, Syria is to submit a 'comprehensive list' of its chemical agents and precursors within one week. French Intelligence sources estimate these stockpiles include approximately 1,000 tons of mustard gas, VX, and Sarin, with production facilities potentially located in Cerin, Hama, near Homs, and north of Damascus.
• The author proposes a three-part holistic approach to the Syrian crisis: first, the urgent convening of an 'All-Syrian Peace Conference' to end a civil war that has killed over 100,000 people and displaced one-third of the 20 million population; second, leveraging global opposition to chemical weapons to push non-signatories of the CWC—specifically South Sudan, Egypt, Israel, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), Burma (Myanmar), and Angola—to ratify the treaty; and third, reviving the effort to establish a Middle Eastern zone free of nuclear weapons and all other WMDs.
• The establishment of a WMD-free zone in the Middle East was part of a 64-step action plan adopted by 190 states parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) on 28 May. Although a conference in Helsinki scheduled for 17 December 2012 was indefinitely postponed by the US, the author suggests the current Syrian situation provides an opportunity to resume this process and encourage Egypt and Israel to ratify the CWC.

APA

Stott, N. (2013). Syria: Seizing the international moment. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.org/iss-today/syria-seizing-the-international-moment

Chicago

Stott, Noel. Syria: Seizing the international moment. Institute for Security Studies, 2013. https://issafrica.org/iss-today/syria-seizing-the-international-moment.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Stott |first1=Noel |title=Syria: Seizing the international moment |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=18 September 2013 |url=https://issafrica.org/iss-today/syria-seizing-the-international-moment |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stott2013syria, author = {Stott, Noel}, title = {{Syria: Seizing the international moment}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2013}, month = sep, url = {https://issafrica.org/iss-today/syria-seizing-the-international-moment}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }