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The United States has announced it’s close to reaching total destruction of its chemical weapons stockpile in September this year.
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The country has less than 150 tonnes of agent remaining and is on target to complete destruction operations by the Chemical Weapons Convention treaty commitment date later this year, according to the Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA).
The PEO ACWA is responsible for safe and environmentally compliant destruction of agent stored at the US Army Pueblo Chemical Depot in Colorado and the Blue Grass Army Depot in Kentucky.
Stored weapons targeted for destruction include GB and VX nerve agent, as well as mustard agent contained in mortar rounds.
US Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense Programs Assistant Defense Secretary Deborah G. Rosenblum said while the destruction effort began nearly 40 years ago, this final push represents decades of policy, cooperation, and technological advancements.
“When the CWC was signed, it was widely agreed that chemical weapons are one of the most inhumane weapons of mass destruction and that their use and production should be eliminated,” she said last year coinciding with the destruction of the last US M55 rocket containing venomous agent X, or VX nerve agent.
“US leadership and commitment against the use of chemical weapons is imperative as countries, such as Syria and Russia, have failed to comply with CWC obligations.
“The United States remains committed to safely and effectively eliminating our chemical weapons stockpile in a manner that protects the security, health, and safety of local communities.”
Russia reportedly completed the destruction of its declared chemical weapons stockpile in September 2017, however US analysts have accused the state of using chemical agent Novichok to assassinate public figures up until 2020 and thus retaining a chemical weapons capacity.
The US came under fire earlier this month from People’s Republic of China Defense Spokesperson Senior Colonel Tan Kefei, who said the destruction of stockpiled chemical weapons should have been completed within 10 years of the Chemical Weapons Convention enactment in 1997.
“The US is the only country that still has stockpiles of chemical weapons. China hopes that the US will fulfil its commitment to complete the destruction of its stockpiles of chemical weapons by this autumn,” he said.
“The US is currently the only country that still maintains stockpiled chemical weapons. China hopes that the US will fulfil its commitments and demonstrate its sincerity through practical actions.
“Meanwhile, in stark contrast to the near-complete destruction of global stockpiles of chemical weapons, the destruction process of Japan’s abandoned chemical weapons in China is severely lagging behind, and the destruction plan has been overdue many times.”
Seven countries who declared chemical weapons stockpiles when they joined the CWC included Albania, India, Iraq, Libya, Syria, the United States, Russia, and South Korea. Albania, South Korea, India, Iraq, Syria, Libya and Russia have completed destruction of their declared arsenals.
Other stockpiles include around 350,000 chemical munitions left on Chinese soil by Japan during the Second World War and unknown stockpiles in North Korea, a non-signatory to the CWC.
