OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Ahmet Üzücmü, meeting the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Palestine, H.E. Dr Riad Al-Maliki, at OPCW Headquarters
THE HAGUE, Netherlands— 16 July 2018 —The Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of the Chemical Weapons (OPCW), Ambassador Ahmet Üzücmü, met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Palestine, H.E. Dr Riad Al-Maliki, during a visit today to OPCW Headquarters in The Hague.
The Director-General and Minister of Foreign Affairs discussed OPCW’s progress in the implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), with a special focus on the activities related to international cooperation, national implementation as well as assistance and protection.
With the recent accession of the State of Palestine to the CWC, the Director-General expressed his hope for the full and timely domestic implementation of the provisions of the Convention.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, H.E. Dr Riad Al-Maliki, remarked that “A world free from weapons of mass destruction is not an ideal, it is a necessity. Such weapons are incompatible with international law, notably international humanitarian law, given their indiscriminate and cruel nature, and their long term impact on populations. The State of Palestine is determined to contribute to securing such a world, jointly through the OPWC”.
Background
The State of Palestine joined the Chemical Weapons Convention in June 2018.
As the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention, the OPCW oversees the global endeavour to permanently eliminate chemical weapons. Since the Convention’s entry into force in 1997 – with its 193 States Parties – it is the most successful disarmament treaty eliminating an entire class of weapons of mass destruction.
Over 96% 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.