THE HAGUE, Netherlands — 15 November 2019 — The Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), H.E. Mr Fernando Arias, briefed yesterday Permanent Representations to the OPCW based outside of The Hague.
During the Director-General’s briefing to 28 delegates from 24 Permanent Representations, he discussed issues pertaining to the upcoming Twenty-Fourth Session of the Conference of the States Parties (CSP-24). The Director-General expressed his appreciation to the Member States for “their on-going commitment and strong support for the Chemical Weapons Convention and the work of the Technical Secretariat”.
The Chairperson of the Executive Council, H.E. Ambassador Andrea Perugini, also provided a briefing on the activities of OPCW’s Executive Council.
Additional briefings were provided by OPCW Deputy Director-General, H.E. Ambassador Odette Melono, on the fifth phase of OPCW’s Africa Programme and by OPCW’s Director of International Cooperation and Assistance (ICA), Ms. Kayoko Gotoh, on assistance and protection programmes.
Participants shared their views and concerns during the question and answer session at the end of the presentations.
Background
The Twenty-Fourth Session of the Conference of the States Parties (CSP-24) will be held from 25-29 November 2019 in The Hague.
The CSP is the principal organ of the OPCW and consists of representatives from each of the Organisation’s Member States. The Conference meets annually and oversees the implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention, promotes the treaty’s objectives and reviews compliance with the treaty.
As the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention, the OPCW, with its 193 Member States, oversees the global endeavour to permanently eliminate chemical weapons. Since the Convention’s entry into force in 1997, it is the most successful disarmament treaty eliminating an entire class of weapons of mass destruction.
Over 97% of all chemical weapon stockpiles declared by possessor States have been destroyed under OPCW verification. For its extensive efforts in eliminating chemical weapons, the OPCW received the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize.
More Information
Information on the Conference of States Parties and the Review Conference
Documents of the Twenty-Fourth Session of the Conference of States Parties