Foreign Ministry: Mexico's Position on the Use of Chemical Weapons in Syria Ministry of Foreign Affairs
go to original September 16, 2013

The Syrian refugee crisis in numbers - animation (TheGuardian)

On behalf of the Mexican government, the Foreign Ministry welcomes the diplomatic efforts to find a peaceful political solution to the Syrian crisis, which has worsened due to the use of chemical weapons on the outskirts of Damascus on August 21st.

Mexico expresses its deep concern regarding reports from NGOs present in Syria and some governments that provide evidence as to the use of chemical weapons, and is waiting for the report of the United Nations investigative mission in Syria.

Mexico voices its strongest condemnation of the use of chemical weapons. The use of weapons that are indiscriminate in their effect is a war crime and a crime against humanity. Since the beginning of the conflict, Mexico has stressed that, regardless of the circumstances of the conflict, there is a universal obligation to respect and ensure respect for international humanitarian law at all times and in all places.

True to its tradition of promoting disarmament and the prohibition of weapons of mass destruction, Mexico gave impetus to negotiation of the 1993 Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction, which has a monitoring system under the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

In this context, Mexico supports the proposal that the Syrian government turn its stockpile of chemical weapons over to the international community to ensure that they are secured, verified and destroyed. Both the universal ban on chemical weapons and the prohibition against attacks on civilians require adherence to the appropriate international treaties.

The Mexican government is consulting with other countries on the feasibility of possible actions in the appropriate multilateral forums to increase pressure on the parties involved in the conflict.

Mexico reiterates that the search for a solution to the Syrian conflict must adhere to international law, especially as related to the law governing the use of force, and once again calls on the Security Council to act based on the responsibilities conferred on it by the United Nations Charter.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE), Mexico, DF, Sep. 13, 2013; translation by SRE

Read the rest at Mexidata.info

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