Russia To Destroy Its Chemical Arsenals By 2012

Russia is likely to destroy all the 40,000 tons of chemical warfare (CW) agents at its disposal by 2012, Oleg Chernov, the Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council, was quoted as saying. In line with the international convention which Moscow joined in 1997, Russia was to destroy all its chemical arsenals by 2007. According to the Russian representative, this deadline is "not acceptable" for Russia, primarily, because of organisational and finance problems. Russia has seven CW storage facilities in six various regions of the country. Until recently, funding of the destruction procedures has never exceeded 5% of the required sum, Chernov reported. He added that since 2000, Russia has taken a number of steps to change the situation. Ten foreign countries and the European Union have stated their readiness to participate in funding the destruction programme of the Russian CW agents. Ten out of the 24 factories listed by the Russian side as CW agent manufacturers, will be destroyed, the rest will be conversed. Six factories have already been destroyed, a high-ranking official of the Russian Security Council was quoted as saying.