The Hague, 5 November 1997

Islamic Republic of Iran Ratifies the Chemical Weapons Convention

On 3 November 1997, the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran deposited its instrument of ratification of the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction (Convention or CWC) with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. In accordance with the provision of paragraph 2 of Article XXI, the Convention will enter into force for the Islamic Republic of Iran on 3 December 1997, 30 days after the date of deposit its instrument of ratification. The total number of instruments of ratification or accession which have been deposited has now increased to 103. The number of States which have signed the Convention, but which have yet to deposit an instrument of ratification, is sixty-five.

The following 102 States, in alphabetical order, have already deposited their instruments of ratification or accession: Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, China, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Equatorial Guinea, Fiji, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guinea, Guyana, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lesotho, Luxembourg, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Niger, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Saint Lucia, Seychelles, Singapore, South Africa, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, the former Republic of Macedonia, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United States of America, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, and Zimbabwe.

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), which is responsible for supervising the implementation of the CWC, was established in The Hague when the Convention entered into force on 29 April 1997. The verification provisions of the Convention consist of a combination of detailed declaration requirements and routine inspections of declared chemical weapons and chemical industry facilities, as well as of short notice challenge inspections at any place under the jurisdiction or control of any State Party.