The Hague, 13 June 2003

Foreign Secretary of Tunisia, H.E. Mrs Saida Chtioui Visits the OPCW

On Thursday 5 June 2003, the Foreign Secretary of Tunisia H.E. Mrs Saida Chtioui accompanied by the Permanent Representative of Tunisia to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), H.E. Mrs Emna Aouij, paid an official visit to the OPCW headquarters in The Hague.

The Foreign Secretary received a comprehensive overview of the implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention including: the status of the destruction of chemical weapons, the destruction or conversion of chemical weapons production facilities, as well the on-going verification at chemical-weapons related and industrial sites, in addition to a summary of the Organisation’s programme delivery in the areas of assistance and protection and international cooperation in the field of the peaceful uses of chemistry.

In their meeting, both the Foreign Secretary and OPCW Director-General, Mr Rogelio Pfirter, stressed the importance of the universality of the Chemical Weapons Convention. Since eight new Member States had joined the Convention in the past eight months, Mrs. Saida Chtioui expressed the hope that “this reinvigorated pace in the expansion of the organisation’s membership will be sustained in the future.”

Tunisia signed the Chemical Weapons Convention on 13 January 1993 and became a Member State of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons on 29 April 1997—the date of the Convention’s entry into force.

Mr Pfirter commended Tunisia’s contribution to the Organisation and highlighted Tunisia’s regional significance, stating, “Tunisia plays a key role in Africa and the Organisation hopes Tunisia will bring its influence to bear within the region to encourage States to join the Convention.”

In light of the pledge made by the States Parties at the recently concluded Review Conference to intensify their bilateral and multilateral efforts towards universality of the Convention, and urge all States not Party to join the Convention without delay, both the Foreign Secretary and the Director-General shared the view that universality of the Convention was fundamental in achieving an effective chemical weapons ban.

The Chemical Weapons Convention, banning chemical weapons, entered into force in 1997 and mandated the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, OPCW, to eliminate chemical weapons forever, to verify the destruction of all declared chemical weapons, to monitor the non-diversion of dual-use chemicals, to facilitate the mutual assistance and protection afforded to all Member States, if any Member State is threatened by or attacked with chemical weapons, as well as to promote the peaceful uses of chemistry.