Ceremony Marks Start of Destruction of Chemical Weapons Abandoned by Japan in China

8 September 2010

A ceremony was held at the storage ground in Nanjing, China on 1 September 2010 to mark the inauguration of the Mobile Destruction Facility in Nanjing and the commencement of operations to destroy chemical weapons abandoned by Japan in China.

The ceremony was attended by Mr Hideo Hiraoka, Senior Vice-Minister of Cabinet Office in Japan, and Mr Zhang Zhijun, Vice Foreign Minister of China.

Mr Krzysztof Paturej, Director of the OPCW’s Office of Special Projects, addressed the gathering on behalf of the Director-General, Ambassador Ahmet Üzümcü.

In his remarks Mr Paturej congratulated the governments of China and Japan on the commencement of the destruction operations, noting the constructive spirit of cooperation that has marked their collaboration with each other and with the OPCW Technical Secretariat in dealing with a challenging issue.

OPCW NEWS  25/2010      THE HAGUE, 8 SEPTEMBER 2010