Syria Got Chemicals From Germany That Had Military Potential


Syria received chemicals from Germany that could have been used to make chemical weapons, according to an a German government document released on Wednesday.

According to the document, the European country exported 111 tonnes of chemicals to Syria from 2002 until 2006. Those chemicals could be used to produce sarin gas.

However, Yahoo! News reports that the government rejected the notion that Germany could have contributed to a horrific sarin gas attack in Syria on August 21. The attack killed hundreds of people.

The West blames the attack on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, though Assad denies the claims. Germany’s economy ministry explained in a letter on Wednesday that the chemicals it sold to Syria were worth $232,300 and were sold for civilian use.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel added to ARD television, “We are of course looking into all allegation on this but from what we can see so far the export license was for civilian use.”

However, the chemicals may not have been used how they were intended. The Huffington Post notes that British media also reported last week that the country approved the export of chemicals to Syria that could be used for making sarin.

The news from both countries comes as the United Nations released a report confirming sarin gas was used on civilians in a suburb of Damascus in August. The United States has said that more than 1,400 people died in the attack, which happened in a rebel-held area of Damascus.

Germany’s economy ministry added of the chemical sale, “Permits were granted after careful consideration of all possible risks, including the goods’ misuse or transfer into chemical weapons use. In all cases their planned civil use was considered to be plausible.”

It is unclear at this point what happened to the chemicals Syria received from Germany. In the meantime, Russia, Syria, and the United States have laid the framework for a plan to remove all chemical weapons from Syria.

[Image via ChameleonsEye / Shutterstock.com]

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