Russian, Chinese Warships To Provide Security In Mission To Get Chemical Weapons Out Of Syria

[Purveyor]

Source: Associated Press

NICOSIA, Cyprus — A spokesman for the joint Danish-Norwegian operation tasked with ferrying Syria's chemical weapons out of the strife-torn country says warships from Russia and China will provide additional security on the transport leg of the operation.

Maj. Eystein Kvarving says the Russian missile cruiser Peter the Great and a Chinese frigate won't be under Danish-Norwegian command, but will be coordinating closely with it.

Cyprus' defense ministry on Thursday identified the Chinese warship as the Yan Cheng.

Kvarving said two cargo ships and their warship escorts will set sail Friday from the Cypriot port of Limassol to waters near Syria where they will wait for orders on when they can head to the Syrian port of Latakia to pick up more than 1,000 tons of chemical agents.

Read more: http://www.greenfieldreporter.com/view/story/20f36fcf609f49c98772908e14a8c0c2/EU-Syria-Chemical-Weapons

[neffernin]

1. 1000 tons?

My goodness.

[justhanginon]

2. Well, they had this sale and it was double coupon day.

How could I resist!

[neffernin]

5. lol

chuckle inducing

[dipsydoodle]

3. Most of that is likely to be base chemicals

Concentrated forms of sodium hypochlorite and hydrochloric acid etc.

[Igel]

4. A lot of the stuff are precursor chemicals.

Not chemical weapons themselves, but the stuff that can be used to make them. In some cases a relatively small percentage of a precursor's mass winds up forming part of the chemical weapon itself.

Many are liquids.