Director-General of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Ahmet Üzümcü recently spoke at Georgetown University in Doha, Qatar about the ongoing efforts to uphold the global ban on chemical weapons.
Üzümcü’s speech was part of a larger conference called the State of Qatar’s Training Course for National Authorities of States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) on Training Escorts for Inspections. The conference objective was training personnel who escort OPCW officers during inspections.
“Despite the existence of one of the most successful disarmament treaties ever, the violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention’s fundamental prohibitions is a matter of serious concern,” Üzümcü said. “This means that our work is far from over. Getting the world to agree on a norm requires hard work, to make that norm truly universal and enduring is even more challenging.”
Üzümcü also talked about his organization’s mandate to enhance global understanding of chemical weapons nonproliferation and the potential threats that face the CWC.
In addition to Üzümcü’s speech, the director-general also met with the Chairman of the National Committee for the Prohibition of Weapons, Major General Staff Nasser Mohamed Al-Ali; Qatar’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani; and Qatar’s Minister of State for Defense Affairs, Dr. Khalid bin Mohammad Al Attiyah.
Qatar has been a member of the CWC since 1997.