LONDON, Dec. 20 (UPI) -- The British government has agreed to take and destroy 150 tons of chemicals from Syria's chemical weapons program, the Foreign Office said Friday.
The chemicals will be incinerated at a commercial facility in Britain, officials said. The Foreign Office said the chemicals are not explosive and are only ingredients for weapons.
"The chemicals, known as 'B precursors,' are used in the pharmaceutical industry and are handled similarly to many other chemicals that are routinely manufactured, transported and destroyed" in the United Kingdom, officials said.
Britain is making a number of other contributions to the international effort to destroy Syria's chemical weapons stockpile. These include providing a Royal Navy ship to escort Norwegian and Danish vessels removing the chemicals.
British equipment is also being sent to the United States and Syria, officials said. The country is donating $3.25 million to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons for its Syria trust fund.
