OPCW Director-General Ahmet Üzümcü (center) and the winners of a student competition on the theme of achieving a world free of chemical weapons. Photo Credit: Steffen Füssel
OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Ahmet Üzümcü, visited Dresden from 29 January-1 February 2016 at the invitation of the Frauenkirche Foundation and State Government of Saxony. During his visit, he met with Prime Minister of Free State Saxony, Mr Stanislaw Tillich, and the Bishop of Saxony, Dr Carsten Rentzing, as well as other senior officials.
As part of the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates lecture series hosted by the Frauenkirche Foundation, Ambassador Üzümcü delivered a lecture at the Frauenkirche entitled Re-Arming Our Humanity: Contributions of Disarmament to Peace [PDF – 107 KB]. Outlining the achievements that contributed to the OPCW being awarded the Nobel Prize in 2013, he noted the importance of a comprehensive and values-based approach to disarmament for peace-building.
Ambassador Üzümcü also met with the winners of a student competition on the theme of achieving a world free of chemical weapons and awarded certificates to them. Addressing the students, the Director-General noted, “The activism of our young people is not just a source of inspiration and hope for our efforts to rid the world of chemical weapons – it is a vital part of that effort.”
In his meetings, the Director-General acknowledged Germany’s strong support for the work of the OPCW and updated senior officials on progress made in the OPCW’s work in Syria.