In furtherance of the objective to eliminate the Syrian chemical weapons
program, the United States and the Russian Federation have reached a shared
assessment of the amount and type of chemical weapons involved, and are
committed to the immediate international control over chemical weapons and
their components in Syria. The United States and the Russian Federation
expect Syria to submit, within a week, a comprehensive listing, including
names, types, and quantities of its chemical weapons agents, types of
munitions, and location and form of storage, production, and research and
development facilities.

FRAMEWORK FOR ELIMINATION OF SYRIAN CHEMICAL WEAPONS
Source: Russian Foreign Ministry Website
http://www.mid.ru/bdomp/brp_4.nsf/e78a48070f128a7b43256999005bcbb3/c237109acb5c0d2344257be600435128!OpenDocument

Taking into account the decision of the Syrian Arab Republic to accede to
the Chemical Weapons Convention and the commitment of the Syrian authorities
to provisionally apply the Convention prior to its entry into force, the
United States and the Russian Federation express their joint determination
to ensure the destruction of the Syrian chemical weapons program (CW) in the
soonest and safest manner.

For this purpose, the United States and the Russian Federation have
committed to prepare and submit in the next few days to the Executive
Council of the OPCW a draft decision setting down special procedures for
expeditious destruction of the Syrian chemical weapons program and stringent
verification thereof. The principles on which this decision should be based,
in the view of both sides, are set forth in Annex A. The United States and
the Russian Federation believe that these extraordinary procedures are
necessitated by the prior use of these weapons in Syria and the volatility
of the Syrian civil war.

The United States and the Russian Federation commit to work together towards
prompt adoption of a UN Security Council resolution that reinforces the
decision of the OPCW Executive Council. This resolution will also contain
steps to ensure its verification and effective implementation and will
request that the UN Secretary-General, in consultation with the OPCW, submit
recommendations to the UN Security Council on an expedited basis regarding
the UN’s role in eliminating the Syrian chemical weapons program.

The United States and the Russian Federation concur that this UN Security
Council resolution should provide for review on a regular basis the
implementation in Syria of the decision of the Executive Council of the
OPCW, and in the event of non-compliance, including unauthorized transfer,
or any use of chemical weapons by anyone in Syria, the UN Security Council
should impose measures under Chapter VII of the UN Charter.

The proposed joint US-Russian OPCW draft decision supports the application
of Article VIII of the Chemical Weapons Convention, which provides for the
referral of any cases of non-compliance to the United Nations General
Assembly and the United Nations Security Council.

In furtherance of the objective to eliminate the Syrian chemical weapons
program, the United States and the Russian Federation have reached a shared
assessment of the amount and type of chemical weapons involved, and are
committed to the immediate international control over chemical weapons and
their components in Syria. The United States and the Russian Federation
expect Syria to submit, within a week, a comprehensive listing, including
names, types, and quantities of its chemical weapons agents, types of
munitions, and location and form of storage, production, and research and
development facilities.

We further determined that the most effective control of these weapons may
be achieved by removal of the largest amounts of weapons feasible, under
OPCW supervision, and their destruction outside of Syria, if possible. We
set ambitious goals for the removal and destruction of all categories of CW
related materials and equipment with the objective of completing such
removal and destruction in the first half of 2014. In addition to chemical
weapons, stocks of chemical weapons agents, their precursors, specialized CW
equipment, and CW munitions themselves, the elimination process must include
the facilities for the development and production of these weapons. The
views of both sides in this regard are set forth in Annex B.

The United States and the Russian Federation have further decided that to
achieve accountability for their chemical weapons, the Syrians must provide
the OPCW, the UN, and other supporting personnel with the immediate and
unfettered right to inspect any and all sites in Syria. The extraordinary
procedures to be proposed by the United States and the Russian Federation
for adoption by the OPCW Executive Council and reinforced by a UN Security
Council resolution, as described above, should include a mechanism to ensure
this right.

Under this framework, personnel under both the OPCW and UN mandate should be
dispatched as rapidly as possible to support control, removal, and
destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons capabilities.

The United States and the Russian Federation believe that the work of the
OPCW and the UN will benefit from participation of the experts of the P5
countries.

The United States and the Russian Federation strongly reiterate their
position on Syria as reflected in the Final Communique of the G-8 Summit in
Northern Ireland in June 2013, especially as regards chemical weapons.

The two sides intend to work closely together, and with the OPCW, the UN,
all Syrian parties, and with other interested member states with relevant
capabilities to arrange for the security of the monitoring and destruction
mission, recognizing the primary responsibility of the Syrian Government in
this regard.

The United States and the Russian Federation note that there are details in
furtherance of the execution of this framework that need to be addressed on
an expedited basis in the coming days and commit to complete these details,
as soon as practicable, understanding that time is of the essence given the
crisis in Syria.

Annex A

Principles for Decision Document by OPCW Executive Council

1. The decision should be based on para 8. Art. IV [IMRA: "8. If a State
ratifies or accedes to this Convention after the 10 year period for
destruction set forth in paragraph 6, it shall destroy chemical weapons
specified in paragraph 1 as soon as possible. The order of destruction and
procedures for stringent verification for such a State Party shall be
determined by the Executive Council." ] and para. 10 of Art V of the CWC.
[IMRA: "10. If a State ratifies or accedes to this Convention after the
10-year period for destruction set forth in paragraph 8, it shall destroy
chemical weapons production facilities specified in paragraph 1 as soon as
possible. The order of destruction and procedures for stringent verification
for such a State Party shall be determined by the Executive Council. "]

2. The decision should address the extraordinary character of the situation
with the Syrian chemical weapons.

3. The decision should take into account the deposit by Syria of the
instrument of accession to the CWC.

4. The decision should provide for the easy accessibility for States Parties
of the information submitted by Syria.

5. The decision should specify which initial information Syria shall submit
to the OPCW Technical Secretariat in accordance with a tightly fixed
schedule and also specifies an early date for submission of the formal CWC
declaration.

6. The decision should oblige Syria to cooperate fully on all aspects of its
implementation.

7. The decision should address a schedule for the rapid destruction of
Syrian chemical weapons capabilities. This schedule should take into account
the following target dates:

A. Completion of initial OPCW on-site inspections of declared sites by
November.

B. Destruction of production and mixing/filling equipment by November.

C. Complete elimination of all chemical weapons material and equipment in
the first half of 2014.

The shortest possible final deadline, as well as intermediate deadlines, for
the destruction of Syrian chemical weapons capabilities should be included
into the schedule.

8. The decision should provide stringent special verification measures,
beginning within a few days, including a mechanism to ensure the immediate
and unfettered right to inspect any and all sites.

9. The decision should address the issue of duties of the OPCW Technical
Secretariat in this situation and its need for supplementary resources to
implement the decision, particularly technical and personnel resources, and
call upon states with relevant capacities to contribute to this end.

10. The decision should refer to the provisions of the CWC obliging the
Executive Council, in cases of non-compliance with the Convention, to bring
the issues directly to the attention of the UN General Assembly and the UN
Security Council.

Annex B
Joint Framework on Destruction of Syrian CW

The Russian Federation and the United States of America agree on the need to
achieve rapid elimination of Syria’s chemical weapons, thus reducing the
threat posed to the people of Syria. They are each prepared to devote
high-level attention and resources to support the monitoring and destruction
mission of the OPCW, both directly and in cooperation with the United
Nations and other States concerned. They agree to set an ambitious goal of
eliminating the threat in a rapid and effective manner.

Both parties agree that a clear picture of the state of Syrian chemical
weapons could help advance a cooperative development of destruction options,
including possible removal of chemical weapons outside of the Syrian
territory. We agree on the importance of rapid destruction of the following
categories:

1. Production equipment

2. Mixing and filling equipment

3. Filled and unfilled weapons and delivery systems

4. Chemical agents (unweaponized) and precursor chemicals. For these
materials, they will pursue a hybrid approach, i.e., a combination of
removal from Syria and destruction within Syria, depending upon
site-specific conditions. They will also consider the possibility of
consolidation and destruction in the coastal area of Syria.

5. Material and equipment related to the research and development of
chemical weapons

The two parties agree to utilize the “universal matrix”, developed in the
course of consultations by our two National Security Councils, as the basis
for an actionable plan.

They agree that the elimination of chemical weapons in Syria should be
considered an urgent matter to be implemented within the shortest possible
time period.

The parties agree to set the following target dates:

A. Completion of initial OPCW on-site inspections by November.

B. Destruction of production and mixing/filling equipment by November.

C. Complete elimination of all chemical weapons material and equipment in
the first half of 2014.

The Russian Federation and the United States will work together closely,
including with the OPCW, the UN and Syrian parties to arrange for the
security of the monitoring and destruction mission, noting the primary
responsibility of the Syrian government in this regard.