Delivered by Ambassador Fernando Arias, OPCW Director-General
THE HAGUE, Netherlands–28 June 2024–Today is a solemn occasion of remembrance for the people of Sardasht.
Thirty-seven years ago, on 28 June, Sardasht was subject to the barbaric horror of a large-scale chemical weapons attack.
On behalf of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, I wish to convey our deepest sympathies to those who died and suffered – and still suffer – as a result of this atrocity.
The tragedy of Sardasht is an event that unites us in condemnation and drives us in our determination to uphold the objectives of the Chemical Weapons Convention.
Its core purpose is a simple and yet an essential one – to exclude completely the possibility of chemical weapons use.
Last year, the OPCW took a major step towards realising its main goal.
On July the 7th, the Organisation verified the destruction of the last chemical munition possessed by the last possessor State Party to the Convention, thus completing the elimination of all declared stockpiles of chemical weapons.
The end of stockpile destruction was a historic moment for the OPCW and the international community, and a great success for global disarmament and the Convention.
Beyond the end of the disarmament process under the Convention, our work of keeping the world safe from chemical weapons is far from over. And it is very sad to recognise it.
Recent views of and threats of use, the dangers we face from chemical terrorism, as well as rapid pace of progress in science and technology remind us that these achievements of the international community under the Convention remain fragile.
We must therefore continue to be vigilant to existing and emerging threats to prevent the re-emergence of these weapons.
Accordingly, it is essential that all States Parties remain dedicated to the Convention’s full and effective implementation.
Thirty-seven years after the atrocity of 1987, we continue to take strength and courage from the survivors of Sardasht.
It is in memory of the victims and with respect to the survivors that we resolve to maintain our course towards a world free of chemical weapons.