The purpose of the meeting was to discuss ways to strengthen cooperation among the represented agencies.
The OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Rogelio Pfirter, visited the United Nations Headquarters in New York City on 8 January 2010 for a meeting with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, together with the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the Executive Secretary of the Preparatory Commission of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), and Ambassador Ahmet Üzümcü, who will succeed Ambassador Pfirter as the OPCW Director-General in July 2010.
They were joined by the UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, the Secretary-General of the Conference on Disarmament, and other senior advisers of Mr Ban Ki-moon on disarmament matters.
The purpose of the meeting was to discuss ways to strengthen cooperation among the represented agencies. The UN Secretary-General noted the developments and challenges in disarmament and non-proliferation in recent years and the window of opportunity for progress that has been opened. He underlined the need for the United Nations and international organisations with mandates in this area to work jointly to achieve mutual objectives, with a view to facilitating the effective exercise of their responsibilities.
All the agencies participating in the meeting reiterated their strong commitment to cooperation with the United Nations and among themselves within their respective mandates.
The meeting was followed by a luncheon hosted by Mr Ban Ki-moon.
OPCW NEWS 01/2010