Director-General for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Ahmet Üzümcü recently spoke on preventing the use of chemical weapons at the Regional Seminar on Chemical Safety and Security Management in Bangladesh.
Attendees of the seminar shared best practices for minimizing the risk of chemical weapons accidents as well as preventing potential attacks by state and non-state actors.
“Preventing such contingencies or incidents is a responsibility shared by governments and industry, and by other stakeholders – it has to be a part of a collective endeavor to promote peace, security, and development,” Üzümcü said.
Over his two day visit, Üzümcü met with Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister H.E. Abdul Hassan Mahmood Ali, Bangladeshi Minister of Parliament H.E. Alhaz Amir Hossain Amu and Lieutenant General Md Mahfuzur Rahman. Üzümcü also spoke on the challenges and successes of implementing the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), a cooperative agreement by more than 192 member states which seeks to destroy all remaining chemical weapons stockpiles worldwide.
Bangladesh joined the CWC in 1997 and is currently an elected member of the OPCW’s executive council until 2018.
To date, more than 93 percent of all chemical weapons stockpiles declared by possessor states have been destroyed under OPCW verification.