The Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China, Mr Liu Lihua, meeting the Director-General of the OPCW, Ambassador Ahmet Üzümcü
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — 18 May 2017 — The Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), Ambassador Ahmet Üzümcü, and the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China, Mr Liu Lihua, agreed to further avenues of cooperation between the OPCW and China in The Hague today.
The Director-General provided an update on ongoing OPCW activities, including in relation to Syria and further briefed Deputy Minister Liu on OPCW-China cooperation. Ambassador Üzümcü appreciated China’s firm commitment to the implementation of the CWC and its contribution to OPCW programmes and projects.
Director-General Üzümcü highlighted the prominent role played by China’s chemical industry and its increasing relevance vis-à-vis the implementation of the Convention.
Deputy Minister Liu reaffirmed China’s commitment to advancing the goals of the Chemical Weapons Convention as well as continuing cooperation with the OPCW on a number of issues, including on the verification regime and future priorities of OPCW.
Background
China joined the Chemical Weapons Convention in 1997.
As the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention, the OPCW oversees the global endeavour to permanently and verifiably eliminate chemical weapons. Since the Convention’s entry into force in 1997 – and with its 192 States Parties – it is the most successful disarmament treaty eliminating an entire class of weapons of mass destruction.
To date, nearly 95 per cent 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 Prize for Peace.