Chemical Weapons Watchdog Holds Landmark Talks with Syria’s New Leaders

The OPCW engages with Syria's interim government to address chemical weapons stockpiles after Assad's fall.

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) met with Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani in Damascus for the first time since Bashar al-Assad's overthrow.
This visit marks a potential reset in relations, as the OPCW seeks to close Syria's chemical weapons file and ensure compliance with the Chemical Weapons Convention.
The OPCW previously found evidence of chemical weapons use by both Assad's regime and the Islamic State during Syria's 14-year civil war.
Concerns remain about the remnants of Syria's chemical weapons program and potential contamination from recent Israeli airstrikes on former regime military sites.
The OPCW aims to help Syria's new leadership safeguard and dismantle any remaining toxic stockpiles, following years of obstruction under Assad's government.