Seminar “The OPCW’s Contribution to the International Security Dimension: Achievements and Challenges”, Berlin, Germany, 7 and 8 June 2010

Nominations are still welcome. The Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is pleased to invite all Member States to participate in a seminar on “The OPCW’s Contribution to the International Security Dimension: Achievements and Challenges”, to be held in Berlin, Germany, at the Federal Foreign Office, on 7 and 8 June 2010.

Provisional programme and nomination form

More information from Germany's Federal Foreign Office

The two-day seminar is jointly organised by the Technical Secretariat (hereinafter “the Secretariat”) and Germany, and is funded by the European Union (EU) under its Council decision 2009/569/CFSP of 27 July 2009.

This seminar aims to promote the goals of the Chemical Weapons Convention (hereinafter “the Convention”) by assessing, in conjunction with major international stakeholders, both the achievements of the Organisation and the challenges that lie ahead.  These stakeholders include States Parties to the Convention, States not Party, the United Nations, the chemical industry, scientific and academic institutions, think tanks, non governmental organisations (NGOs), and other relevant international and regional organisations.

By focussing on the essential role that the Convention plays in terms of international security, this seminar will seek to enhance support for its objectives within policy making circles in national capitals.  Critical issues that affect the long-term success of the Convention, such as effective national implementation, universality, and the impact of developments in science and technology, will be discussed.  

The organisation of this seminar is consistent with the recommendation of the Second Review Conference relating to the need for further efforts to broaden support for the Convention, especially at a policy-making level.  The seminar thus intends to:

• raise awareness about the importance of the Convention and the work of the OPCW;  
• strengthen dialogue and coordination between the OPCW and major stakeholders at the national, regional, and international levels; and
• promote universal adherence to, and the effective implementation of, the Convention.

The following thematic issues will be discussed at the seminar:

• the state of implementation of the Convention (including the status of     destruction of chemical weapons), and relevant decision of the policy-making organs, including the Second Review Conference;
• universality and national implementation of the Convention (achievements and challenges);
• the future of industry verification and developments in science and technology (and their impact on the Convention);
• cooperation among international organisations in an interdependent world, an exchange of views on global anti-terrorism efforts, and the implementation of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution 1540 (2004); and
• effective multilateralism: The contribution of the Convention to disarmament and non-proliferation, and the current state of arms control and disarmament, including opportunities and challenges.

Member States are invited to nominate participants for the seminar.  The Secretariat also invites participation from States not Party, and the other stakeholders mentioned in paragraph 3 above.  Due to the limited funds available for sponsorship, the Secretariat expects to be able to sponsor only a limited number of participants at the senior policy-making level.  The nomination of qualified female participants is strongly encouraged.

The seminar will be conducted in English.  All participants must therefore possess a good command of English, both written and oral.

Each nomination should specify whether sponsorship is a condition for the nominee’s participation.  For sponsored participants, the Secretariat will cover the costs of travel and medical insurance, and will provide a limited subsistence allowance to cover meals and sundry expenses.  The Secretariat will also arrange and pay for accommodation for sponsored participants.  Sponsored participants who do not intend to use the accommodation arranged by the Secretariat are requested to indicate that as soon as possible, so that the Secretariat does not incur hotel cancellation fees.  In any case, the Secretariat will not cover the costs of any accommodation it has not arranged.

When making travel arrangements for sponsored participants, the Secretariat will seek the most economical options.  The Secretariat will purchase tickets and send them to participants.  Participants will be allowed to purchase tickets locally only if this leads to further savings for the Secretariat, and if the Secretariat authorises it.  Sponsored participants shall bear all costs resulting from any changes they make, once the Secretariat has purchased tickets.

Participants who have not been sponsored by the Secretariat are requested to make their own travel and accommodation arrangements.  In order to facilitate the booking of hotel rooms, the German Federal Foreign Office has arranged for accommodation at reduced rates.  Concessional rates are available at three hotels in Berlin, all of which are in the vicinity of the conference venue.  To benefit from these rates, non sponsored participants must reserve their rooms directly with the hotels by 22 April 2010.  For additional information regarding hotel reservations, participants are advised to visit www.cwc-conference-berlin-2010.diplo.de, the Federal Foreign Office website for the seminar.
    
In order for the Secretariat to keep costs at a minimum, sponsored participants are expected to arrive no earlier than 6 June 2010 and to depart no later than 9 June 2010.

Participants are requested to obtain any necessary visas (including transit visas) before travelling to Germany.

Interested participants are invited to complete the nomination form, making sure in particular to provide all the contact details it requests.  Completed forms should be addressed to the Director, External Relations Division, OPCW, Johan de Wittlaan 32, 2517 JR The Hague, the Netherlands.  Nominations may also be submitted by fax to +31 (0)70 416 3280 or +31 (0)70 306 3535, or by e-mail to grb@opcw.org.  All nominations must be received by the Secretariat no later than 15 April 2010.

Additional information about the workshop may be obtained from the Government Relations Branch, External Relations Division.  The contact persons are Ms Eva Pérez, who can be reached at +31 (0)70 416 3237 and Mr Martin Ewi, who can be reached at +31 (0)70 416 3023.

Categories: Outreach, Universality

Files:

 CALL FOR NOMINATIONS FOR THE SEMINAR “THE OPCW’S CONTRIBUTION TO THE INTERNATIONAL SECURITY DIMENSION: ACHIEVEMENTS AND CHALLENGES” BERLIN, GERMANY 7 AND 8 JUNE 2010 (38 kB)