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| The Hague, 11 July 2005 | Number 32 | ||
On 6 July 2005, an implementation training workshop for nine representatives of the Government of the Republic of Iraq commenced at the headquarters of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague. The three-day course, which is made possible by a voluntary contribution from the Government of Japan, addresses the specific requirements of the Iraqi Government to ensure that the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) is effectively applied when Iraq accedes to the CWC.
OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Rogelio Pfirter, met the Iraqi officials, and on behalf of the OPCW, welcomed their participation in the CWC training course. He thanked the officials for their clear determination to facilitate Iraq’s efforts to meet the objectives of the CWC and assured them of the OPCW’s firm commitment to provide the Iraqi Government the support necessary to advance the process of Iraq’s accession to the CWC.
In his opening statement to the training course, the Permanent Representative of Japan to the OPCW, H.E. Mr Kyoji Komachi, expressed his Government’s support for the aspiration of the Iraqi Government to join the OPCW and commended Iraq for its desire to proceed with the process of accession to the CWC and implementation of the chemical weapons ban in Iraq.
The Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Sir Colin Budd, in his opening statement welcomed the Iraqi officials and the willingness of the Iraqi Government to address the task of fulfilling their obligations under the CWC, assuring the Iraqi officials that this effort would receive his Government's full support.
On behalf of his Government, Deputy Permanent Representative of the United States to the OPCW, Mr Pete Ito, welcomed the Iraqi officials’ resolve to enhance their understanding of the CWC and the OPCW’s mission as a clear demonstration of Iraq’s commitment to accede to the CWC, and to ensure that its full and effective implementation in Iraq will meet the aspirations of the Iraqi Government’s express political commitment to the global chemical weapons ban.
The Ambassador of the Republic of Iraq to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, H.E. Mr Siamand Banaa, reaffirmed that his Government and the States Parties to the CWC shared a common desire and purpose in seeking to accede to the CWC, in particular to ensure that the horrors of chemical warfare will never occur again in Iraq, and stated that Iraq, which had suffered greatly from abuses of chemical weapons, will take a leading part in the OPCW in the future.
The training course provides the representatives of the Iraqi Government the expert guidance needed to prepare obligatory declarations, establish and efficiently operate a National Authority, enact national implementing legislation and put in place the required regulatory measures to eliminate chemical weapons and to prevent their spread in accordance with the CWC.
The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) is an international, multilateral disarmament treaty which bans the development, production, stockpiling, transfer and use of chemical weapons. The 169 States Parties to the CWC are obligated to declare any chemical weapons-related activities, to secure and destroy any stockpiles of chemical weapons within the stipulated deadlines, as well as to inactivate and eliminate any chemical weapons production capacity within their jurisdiction.
The CWC entered into force in 1997 and mandated the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to eliminate chemical weapons forever. The OPCW verifies the irreversible destruction of declared chemical weapons stockpiles, as well as the elimination of all declared chemical weapons production facilities. The OPCW Member States, together with OPCW inspectors, monitor the non-diversion of chemicals for activities prohibited under the CWC and verify the consistency of industrial chemical declarations. In addition, OPCW States Parties undertake to provide protection and assistance, if chemical weapons have been used against a State Party, or if such weapons threaten a State Party. The CWC also calls for international cooperation in the peaceful use of chemistry.
The CWC is the single disarmament agreement that in its daily application around the world is used to verify the on-going elimination of an entire category of weapons of mass destruction, chemical weapons. OPCW inspections are conducted in dozens of countries, where both military and industrial sites are subject to verification. The verification procedures and the declaration obligations of the States Parties are applied in an entirely non-discriminatory manner, following protocols negotiated and adopted in intensive and transparent multilateral negotiations. All States Parties enjoy the same rights and bear the same obligations, regardless of their declared possession of chemical weapons.
The global chemical weapons ban is approaching universality: 169 States are now party to the CWC and have taken the sovereign decision to renounce chemical weapons in perpetuity, while voluntarily complying with a strict verification regime. Together, these countries form the OPCW. Only 25 States have not as yet acceded or ratified the CWC. Every country is urged to accede to, or ratify, the Chemical Weapons Convention so that the development, production, stockpiling, transfer and use of chemical weapons is illegal everywhere. Universality of the CWC is a key priority in establishing a global and permanent ban of chemical weapons.
The CWC's international jurisdiction and deterrent effect is bolstered by the steadily expanding membership of the OPCW, now encompassing over 95% of the global population, as well as 98% of the relevant global chemical industry. The broad coverage of this disarmament treaty, the most complex and comprehensive international agreement of its kind ever to be adopted, grants States party to the CWC an ever more robust assurance that chemical weapons will no longer be developed, produced, stockpiled, used or transferred.
Six States Parties have declared chemical weapons and must destroy over eight million items, including munitions and containers — in total, over seventy-one thousand metric tonnes of extremely toxic chemical agents. By comparison, one drop of a nerve agent, no larger than the head of a pin, can kill an adult within minutes after exposure.
Every Member State must introduce and apply legislation to make the development, production, use, stockpiling or transfer of chemical weapons by any person or group illegal. Severe penalties must be imposed should this crime be committed. Each Member State is obliged to provide other Member States with its fullest cooperation so as to expedite prosecution.
To make sure that the Convention is implemented effectively, Member States are obliged to designate or establish a “National Authority”. This body participates in and coordinates OPCW inspections of relevant industrial or military sites, makes initial and annual declarations, participates in assisting and protecting those Member States which are threatened by, or have indeed suffered, a chemical attack, and fosters the peaceful uses of chemistry. In addition, the National Authority acts as the focal point in the State Party's interaction with other States Parties and the OPCW's Technical Secretariat. The OPCW Technical Secretariat has established a coordinated mechanism to support Member States in their national implementation of the Convention. The focus of this work is to provide advice and assistance to the staff of National Authorities in order to help them enhance their skills and expertise.
100% of the declared chemical weapons production facilities (CWPFs) have been deactivated. All are subjected to a verification regime of unprecedented stringency. Over 75% of the declared CWPFs have been eliminated. Over 25% of the 8.6 million chemical munitions and containers covered by the Convention have been verifiably destroyed. Over 14% of the world's declared stockpiles of approximately 71,000 metric tonnes of chemical agent have been verifiably destroyed. Over 2,000 on-site inspections have been conducted in over 70 States Parties to verify compliance with the CWC.
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