Panamanian Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Visits the OPCW

13 February 2002

H.E. Mr Harmodio Arias Cerjack, Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of Panama, paid an official visit to the headquarters of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague on 13 February. He was accompanied by H.E. Mr Roland A. Guevara Alvarado, Permanent Representative of Panama to the OPCW.

Vice-Minister Cerjack met with the Director-General, Ambassador José M. Bustani, and members of the OPCW senior management and received a briefing on the implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), as well as a tour of OPCW headquarters. The occasion of the Vice-Minister’s visit also marked the signing of a Privileges and Immunities Agreement between the OPCW and Panama.

The Director-General and the Vice-Minister discussed issues of importance to both parties, including the need for full and complete implementation of the Convention. The Director-General urged Panama to encourage States, which are not yet party to the Convention in Latin America and the Caribbean, to adhere and accede to the Convention.

11/2002