On 15 February 2007 the International Institute of Humanitarian Law in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Italy held a seminar in Sanremo, Italy on “The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) between Disarmament and International Humanitarian Law”. The seminar looked at the successes and challenges in the implementation of the CWC over the past decade and assessed the upcoming CWC Second Review Conference.
The Seminar was opened with a welcome address by Ambassador Antonio Catalano di Melilli, Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who gave the floor to Ambassador Rogelio Pfirter, OPCW Director-General. In his speech, Ambassador Pfirter said that the CWC represents a major advancement in the development of international humanitarian law. The humanitarian drive that brought nations together to eliminate the scourge of war by “plague and poison” was finally realised in the form of the Chemical Weapons Convention, and compared to instruments of a similar nature only the CWC comprehensively prohibits an entire category of weapons of mass destruction and provides for their complete elimination under conditions of strict verification.
The seminar was structured into three segments: 1) the politics of Review Conferences, chaired by Ambassador Andrea Negrotto Cambiaso, former Permanent Representative of Italy to the UN and to the Conference on Disarmament; 2) the main issues to be covered in the CWC Second Review Conference, chaired by Ambassador Mario Sica, Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and 3) the CWC, humanitarian law and protection against chemical weapons, chaired by Mr. Ian Anthony, Project Leader and Research Coordinator, SIPRI, Stockholm.
Coordinated by Prof. Natalino Ronzitti, Professor of International Law, Faculty of Law, Libera Universita degli Studi Sociali (LUISS) Roma, the seminar included presentations by officials of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, international academicians and policy experts, research institutes and OPCW delegations.
The International Institute of Humanitarian Law, chaired by Ambassador Maurizio Moreno (Italy) is an independent, non-profit and humanitarian organisation founded in 1970 whose main objective is to promote international humanitarian law, human rights, refugee law and related issues.