Press briefing by OPCW Director-General H.E. Mr Ahmet Üzümcü on the OPCW briefing before the Security Council.
Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Director-General Ahmet Üzümcü said an OPCW team has been deployed to Salisbury to collect samples related to the alleged use of a nerve agent in the British city and expected results to be established in “two to three weeks.”
Speaking to reporters in New York today (20 Mar), Üzümcü said experts were deployed upon the request of the British Government adding that the collected samples would be sent to OPCW labs. He added that the lab analysis might take “another two to three weeks and we will share the results with the British Government.”
Asked if the OPCW could trace the samples back to Russian or Soviet made chemicals, the OPCW Director-General said he would not “prejudge the outcome of the analysis.” He said the technical work had to be conducted. He added that once the samples are brought back to the OPCW headquarters in the Netherlands, they will be split and send to different designated labs “which may take some time.” The labs would need another two to three weeks to finalize the analysis.
