The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is an intergovernmental organisation and the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC),which entered into force on 29 April 1997. The OPCW,with its 193 member states,has its seat in The Hague,Netherlands;it oversees the global endeavour for the permanent and verifiable elimination of chemical weapons.
The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC),officially the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development,Production,Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction,is an arms control treaty administered by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW),an intergovernmental organization based in The Hague,The Netherlands. The treaty entered into force on 29 April 1997. It prohibits the use of chemical weapons,and also prohibits large-scale development,production,stockpiling,or transfer of chemical weapons or their precursors,except for very limited purposes. The main obligation of member states under the convention is to effect this prohibition,as well as the destruction of all current chemical weapons. All destruction activities must take place under OPCW verification.
JoséMaurício de Figueiredo Bustani is a Brazilian diplomat who was the first director-general of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons until he was ousted after pressure from the US government in April 2002 over disagreements about how to address Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction.
Foreign relations between Argentina and the Holy See,have existed for over a century. The current pope,Pope Francis,was the former Archbishop of Buenos Aires.
Ahmet Üzümcü is a Turkish career diplomat,who previously served as the Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
Guillermo John Roque Fernández de Soto Valderrama is a Colombian lawyer and diplomat,who has served as Secretary General of the Andean Community of Nations,Minister of Foreign Affairs of Colombia,Ambassador of Colombia to the Kingdom of the Netherlands,and designated-Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotenciary,Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations in New York.
The United States Permanent Representative to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) has the rank of Ambassador and is based in The Hague,Netherlands,the seat of the OPCW. The current permanent representative is Nicole Shampine.
Eduardo Pizarro Leongómez was an Ambassador of Colombia to the Netherlands in 2011. A sociologist and political analyst,he was a co-founder,former director,and professor of the Political Studies and Foreign Relations Institute (IEPRI) of the National University of Colombia;he served as Presiding Member of the National Commission for Reparation and Reconciliation of Colombia,CNRR as a delegate of the Vice President of Colombia from 2005 to 2009;and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Trust Fund for Victims of the International Criminal Court.
Francisco JoséLloreda Mera is a Colombian lawyer,politician,writer,editor and newspaper director. He is serving as High Presidential Advisor for Coexistence and Citizen Security in the Administration of President Juan Manuel Santos Calderón. He previously served the government as Ambassador of Colombia to the Netherlands and as Minister of National Education of Colombia.
Eduardo Ibarrola Nicolin,is a Mexican-born diplomat. Former Mexican ambassador to the Netherlands and the Permanent Representative to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.
The Day of Remembrance for All Victims of Chemical Warfare is an annual event held November 30 as a "tribute to the victims of chemical warfare,as well as to reaffirm the commitment of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to the elimination of the threat of chemical weapons,thereby promoting the goals of peace,security,and multilateralism." It is officially recognised by the United Nations (UN) and has been celebrated since 2005. On the 2013 observance day,the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon gave a speech where he stated:
On this Remembrance Day,I urge the international community to intensify efforts to rid the world of chemical weapons,along with all other weapons of mass destruction. Let us work together to bring all States under the Convention and promote its full implementation. This is how we can best honour past victims and liberate future generations from the threat of chemical weapons.
The following lists events that happened in Argentina in 2018.
Fernando Arias González is a Spanish diplomat,who currently serves as the Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
Rafael Mariano Grossi is an Argentine diplomat. He is serving as Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) since December 3,2019. He was formerly the Argentine Ambassador to Austria,concurrent with Slovenia,Slovakia and International Organisations based in Vienna (2013–2019).
Eduardo Félix Valdés is an Argentine politician,currently serving as National Deputy elected in the Federal Capital. A member of the Justicialist Party,Valdés served as the Argentine ambassador to the Holy See during the presidency of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.
María Fernanda Silva is an Argentine career diplomat,and the current ambassador of Argentina to the Holy See. She is the first woman to hold the ambassadorship to the Holy See,as well as the first Afro-Argentine to lead an Argentine diplomatic mission.
Normando Miguel Álvarez García is an Argentine politician and lawyer. He served as the Argentine ambassador to Bolivia between 2016 and 2019,during the presidency of Mauricio Macri. As of 2021,he serves as minister of work in Jujuy Province,under the governorship of Gerardo Morales.
Mario Oyarzabal is an Argentine jurist and diplomat. He has been the ambassador of Argentina to the Netherlands and a permanent representative for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons since 2020. He was deputy permanent representative to the United Nations Security Council between 2013 and 2014,and Director General of the Legal Department and The Legal Adviser of the Foreign Ministry between 2016 and 2020.
