THE HAGUE, Netherlands—20 December 2024—The Government of the Republic of Lithuania announced a contribution of €10,000 to the Trust Fund for the Implementation of Article X of the Organisation of the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). This contribution will directly support in providing assistance and protection activities to Ukraine, including the training of Ukrainian experts.
The voluntary contribution was formalised on 17 December in a signing ceremony held between the Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Lithuania to the OPCW, H.E. Mr Neilas Tankevičius, and the OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Fernando Arias, at the Organisation’s Headquarters in The Hague.
H.E. Mr Neilas Tankevicius, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Lithuania to the OPCW, and Ambassador Fernando Arias, OPCW Director-General, formalise Lithuania’s voluntary contribution to support the OPCW’s assistance activities.
Ambassador Tankevičius remarked: “Lithuania is pleased to contribute to the Technical Secretariat, under Article X of the Convention, to continue strengthening Ukraine’s capabilities to protect its people against the use of chemical weapons as well as to further investigate the registered incidents of CWC breach.”
Director-General Arias expressed his sincere appreciation to Lithuania for its contribution, emphasising that “such support is vital for the OPCW to continue its essential work in enhancing protection measures, assisting those in need, and addressing violations of the CWC.” He further underscored the importance of global support for upholding the norms and principles of the CWC, stating “Together, we reaffirm our collective commitment to a world free of chemical weapons.”
Background
Lithuania has been an active member of the OPCW since 1998 and is currently a member of the Executive Council, the OPCW’s executive organ, which is tasked with promoting the effective implementation of and compliance with the Chemical Weapons Convention as well as supervising the activities of the Organisation’s Technical Secretariat.
To date, Lithuania has contributed over €50,000 to various OPCW Trust Funds including the Trust Fund for Syria Missions and the Trust Fund for a Centre for Chemistry and Technology.
Since February 2022, States Parties have contributed at least €4.52M in voluntary contributions to a Trust Fund on Assistance and Protection of Ukraine to support capacity building activities.
In 2024, the Technical Secretariat deployed several Technical Assistance Visits (TAVs) to Ukraine, upon its request and supported in strengthening the country’s capacity and preparedness for prevention and protection in respect to chemical weapons related incidents. Additionally, 60 Ukrainian experts were trained in sampling and detection techniques at the OPCW Centre for Chemistry and Technology, and 60 Ukrainian first responders participated in online specialised training on emergency response to the use of toxic chemicals.
As the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention, the OPCW, with its 193 Member States, oversees the global endeavour to permanently eliminate chemical weapons. Since the Convention’s entry into force in 1997, it is the most successful disarmament treaty eliminating an entire class of weapons of mass destruction.
In 2023, the OPCW verified that all chemical weapons stockpiles declared by the 193 States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention since 1997 — totalling 72,304 metric tonnes of chemical agents — have been irreversibly destroyed under the OPCW’s strict verification regime.
For its extensive efforts in eliminating chemical weapons, the OPCW received the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize.