OPCW		Secretariat
International Cooperation and Assistance Division
S/306/2002
16 May 2002
ENGLISH & SPANISH only
(Unofficial electronic version)

NOTE BY THE SECRETARIAT

POSTPONEMENT OF THE REGIONAL SEMINAR ON THE ROLE OF THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRY IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO4 – 6 JUNE 2002

1.                  The Government of Mexico and the Secretariat of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) wish to inform Member States that the regional seminar on the role of the chemical industry in the implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention in Latin America and the Caribbean, originally scheduled to be held in Mexico City, Mexico, from 4 - 6 June 2002, has now been postponed.

2.                  The seminar has been postponed so that the chemical industry in the region will be afforded additional time to apply to participate in the sessions. 

3.                  It is intended that the seminar will provide a framework for discussing issues related to the practical implementation of the Convention, and particularly the following: 

(a)        an introduction to, and discussions on, the status of implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention;

(b)        the import and export provisions of the Convention;

(c)        the declarations required by the Convention;

(d)        verification of the chemical industry, and the Organisation’s experience with chemical industry inspections;  and      

(e)        international cooperation and assistance projects, and implementation support programmes.

4.                  Industry participation is crucial to the success of the seminar. Member States are requested to convey the above-mentioned information to their respective chemical industry representatives in order to promote their participation in the seminar.

5.                  Additional information about the meeting and any related questions may be addressed to the Implementation Support Branch of the International Cooperation and Assistance Division:

Tel.:  +31-(0)70-416 3799;  416 3825

Fax:   +31-(0)70-306 3535

E-mail:  ipb@opcw.org

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