Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani announced on Thursday Syria's return to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, based on the progress Damascus has made in cooperation with the organization's technical secretariat.

Al-Shibani wrote on platform X: 'In a historic step reflecting Syria's restoration of its international standing, Syria has today, with unprecedented consensus among member states, regained all its rights and privileges in the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.'

According to the SANA news agency, the decision, submitted by Qatar with diplomatic support from its embassy in The Hague, was sponsored by 66 countries, the largest number of sponsors for a draft resolution in the organization's history, before gaining consensus from all members of the Executive Council.

It added that the decision is based on the progress Syria has made in cooperation with the organization's technical secretariat, including facilitating verification and inspection activities, participating in investigations, tracking suspects, and searching for remnants of the chemical program of the former regime, while emphasizing continued cooperation, completion of verification procedures, and fulfillment of obligations under the convention.

The organization, according to Reuters, said it took its decision after what it described as a 'significant change in circumstances' since the fall of the regime of former President Bashar al-Assad.

The decision stipulates the restoration of Syria's rights and privileges under the Chemical Weapons Convention, while affirming continued cooperation between Damascus and the organization, completion of verification procedures and full implementation of convention obligations, and the organization's director-general continuing to provide periodic reports to the Executive Council on progress made.

"Disposing of the legacy of the former regime"

In his speech before the organization's Executive Council, the head of Syria's permanent mission to the organization, Mohammad Katoub, said that Syria has moved during the past period from responding to inspection requests and deployment requirements to a stage where Syrian national teams lead investigations with suspects, search, assess, and plan to reach and dispose of remnants of the chemical program of the Assad regime, and hold those involved accountable.

SANA quoted Katoub as saying: 'The restoration of rights and privileges, with such a large welcome and consensus of all members of the organization's Executive Council, is a welcome signal for Syria's return to being an effective part of the international community, and it is also a signal for the victims who suffered from chemical weapons to regain the rights of their state, which were suspended due to the Assad regime's use of chemical weapons against them.'

He added: 'Syria is determined to dispose of the legacy of the Assad regime's chemical program as part of the country's recovery from years of war and decades of dictatorship, and this also includes holding officials accountable, developing national legislation, strengthening institutional capabilities, and addressing the long-term effects of this program on people, the environment, and the economy.'

In 2021, the organization stripped Syria of its rights after it was confirmed that the former regime's forces repeatedly used toxic gas during the civil war in attacks that resulted in thousands of casualties and injuries.

The administration of Syrian President Ahmed al-Shara pledged to work with the international community to dispose of the old weapons of mass destruction.