United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs Abe Visits the OPCW

On 16 March 2005, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs, Mr Nobuyasu Abe, met the Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), Ambassador Rogelio Pfirter, at the OPCW Headquarters in The Hague.

Under-Secretary-General Abe and Director-General Pfirter discussed the most salient issues regarding the full and effective implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) to which 167 nations are party. The CWC seeks to completely eliminate and ban chemical weapons, ensure that all chemical weapons stockpiles are verifiably and irreversibly destroyed, while undertaking to prevent the proliferation of chemical weapons. All States Parties to the CWC have the right to request assistance and protection should they be attacked with chemical weapons or threatened by their use. All 167 OPCW Member States cooperate internationally to promote the peaceful uses of chemistry.

In his discussion with the Director-General, Under-Secretary-General Abe praised the achievements of the OPCW, underscoring that the Organisation served as a good example of the international community’s multilateral efforts in the fight against weapons of mass destruction.

Director-General Pfirter briefed Under-Secretary-General Abe on the Organisation’s recent progress in disarmament, including the status of Member States’ chemical weapons destruction and non-proliferation measures, as well as in the effort to ensure effective, global application of the chemical weapons ban through the Organisation’s two Action Plans to achieve the Convention’s universal adherence and complete implementation. Director-General Pfirter reiterated in this regard the crucial importance of the continued, close co-operation with the United Nations.

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