UN experts visit 3 new sites in Syria

A UN official said the UN advance team of chemical weapons experts in Syria has visited three new sites on Wednesday to inspect and supervise the destruction of the country's arsenal of the banned weapons. The official did not mention the names of the sites for security reasons, but stressed that at this stage the advance team is inspecting chemical weapons production facilities and supervising their destruction by the Syrian authorities. Wednesday's visit is the second after the destruction of such weaponry began last Sunday. The Security Council is scheduled to discuss tomorrow Thursday Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's proposal to establish a joint Mission of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and the United Nations to rid Syria of its banned weapons by mid-2014. The Council is expected to approve the proposal which Ban said it would cost the UN alone 2 million from the UN regular budget. OPCW will pay for its operations in Syria from its own budget. Under-Secretary-General for Management Yukio Takasu, who briefed journalists earlier in the day on the "sound" financial situation of the Organization, told KUNA that the amount of USD two million proposed by Ban, is "per month, I think." He indicated that the Secretary-General can fund "unforeseen and extraordinary" projects from the UN regular budget without returning to the General Assembly for approval, adding that Ban can spend from the budget as much as USD 10 million, if necessary, if it is a matter of peace and security. He said the UN side of the Joint Mission will be funded from now until the end of December from the 2013 budget, but from the 2014 budget from January until the end of June 2014. Asked how much the Joint Mission's work will cost, Takasu did not want to speculate, saying it will depend on many factors. (end) sj.gb KUNA 100012 Oct 13NNNN