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,and prohibits the large-scale use,development,production,stockpiling and transfer of chemical weapons and 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.
Libya pursued programs to develop or acquire weapons of mass destruction from when Muammar Gaddafi seized control of Libya in 1969 until he announced on 19 December 2003 that Libya would voluntarily eliminate all materials,equipment and programs that could lead to internationally proscribed weapons. This included weapons of mass destruction and long-range ballistic missiles.
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 Joseph Manso. Ambassador Manso was confirmed by the U.S. Senate in August 2020 and he presented his credentials to director-general Fernando Arias on September 23,2020.
Eduardo Pizarro Leongómez is the Ambassador of Colombia to the Netherlands. A sociologist and political analyst,he was a co-founder,former director,and professor of the Political Studies and Foreign Relations Institute 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.
The 2013 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons for their "extensive work to eliminate chemical weapons". The award citation indicated the organization was awarded the prize,because they "have defined the use of chemical weapons as taboo under international law. Recent events in Syria,where chemical weapons have again been put to use,have underlined the need to enhance the efforts to do away with such weapons." The committee criticized Russia and the United States for not meeting the extended deadline for destruction of its chemical weapons,and noted that certain countries "are still not members". The OPCW was the 22nd organization to be awarded the prize.
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.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 2118 was adopted unanimously on 27 September 2013,in regard to the Framework for Elimination of Syrian Chemical Weapons during the Syrian civil war. It recalled United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1540,2042 and 2043 and occurred on the sidelines of the General debate of the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. Under the Resolution,Syria had until mid-2014 to destroy its chemical weapons arsenal;and the Resolution also outlines plans for a transition. Despite a few hiccups,the OPCW reported that the destruction was largely on schedule.
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.
Fernando Arias 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 has served 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.
