Status of assistance and protection as at February 2009

Following are the paragraphs related to assistance and protection contained in the opening statement by the OPCW Director-General to the Executive Council at its 55th session.

During the intersessional period, an advanced and a basic course for the Secretariat’s Assistance Coordination and Assessment Team (ACAT) were held from 27 to 30 October 2008 and from 11 to 13 February 2009, respectively, with the financial support of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The United Kingdom also financed a course for the regional emergency-response team, which was held in Trinidad and Tobago from 13 to 17 October. An international course on medical aspects of defence against chemical weapons, jointly organised with the National Authority of the Islamic Republic of Iran, was held from 1 to 5 November in Tehran. A biennial protection course for Spanish-speaking countries was held jointly with the Government of Spain from 10 to 19 November in Madrid.

With financial support from the Czech Government, a Swiss laboratory course in Spiez, Switzerland, was held from 10 to 14 November for States in the East African subregion. A new project for States Parties in West Africa was launched with the support of Switzerland. A planning meeting was held in Dakar, Senegal, from 27 to 28 November. A national emergency-response training course was held in Algeria from 24 to 28 November for experts from different agencies involved in the emergency response. The host country provided financial and logistical support.

Together with the Regional Arms Control Verification and Implementation Assistance Centre (RACVIAC), the Secretariat organised a seminar for the States Parties of South Eastern Europe, devoted to declarations under the Convention. This seminar is under way this very week in Rakitje, Croatia.

Finally, three technical visits to assess assistance offers under paragraph 7 of Article X were carried out to Spain, the Russian Federation, and Ukraine in November and December 2008. The last two visits were financially supported by the European Union Joint Action 2007.