The Twenty-Second Session of the Conference of the States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) appointed H.E. Ambassador Fernando Arias of Spain as the next Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), Thursday November 30th.
OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Ahmet Üzümcü, extended his congratulations to Ambassador Arias: “I wish you every success in your stewardship of this Organisation as it increasingly focuses on preventing the re-emergence of chemical weapons.”
In his speech following the appointment, Ambassador Arias expressed, “I am fully committed to the success of this Organisation in overcoming the challenges ahead. With this conviction, I intend to have an active and, at the same time, discrete role in tackling any situation”.
Ambassador Arias will assume office on 25 July 2018 for a tenure of four years. He is succeeding Ambassador Üzümcü who will step down after serving at the helm of the OPCW for eight years, the maximum allowed under the Convention.
The appointment of Ambassador Arias follows a consensus recommendation by the OPCW Executive Council in October 2017.
Ambassador Arias is a career diplomat with extensive experience in multilateral diplomacy. Currently, he serves as Ambassador of Spain to the Netherlands and the Permanent Representative of Spain to the OPCW. Previously, he has served as Permanent Representative of Spain to the United Nations in New York and Ambassador of Spain to Mali, Mauritania, Macedonia, and Bulgaria.
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Photography by OPCW.
