World powers traded accusations of hypocrisy in bitter clashes on Monday over the global toxic weapons watchdog's new ability to attribute blame for attacks like those in Syria and Salisbury.
The United States and Britain went head-to-head with Russia, China and Syria over the boosted powers that members agreed to give the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in June.
At a tense meeting in The Hague, Moscow and Beijing were accused of trying to stall the watchdog's new role indefinitely by proposing that the changes be subjected to "open ended" scrutiny before going live.
US Ambassador Kenneth Ward said Russia's claims that the OPCW's new powers were illegitimate were "pungent hypocrisy", and warned against allowing a "new era of chemical weapons use to take hold".
"What have they done for the last few years but to connive with their Syrian ally to bury the truth of what has happened in Syria, along with the dead killed by the use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime," Ward said.
"And as if that wasn't bad enough, Salisbury comes along."
"Where is your morality? This is sheer hypocrisy and sheer lies, I wish to use such undiplomatic language."
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