| The Hague, the Netherlands – 19 August 2020 – The Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has made four voluntary contributions totalling £800,000 to support a number of major projects and activities of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). A contribution of £200,000 will support the activities of the Trust Fund for Syria Missions at the OPCW. The Trust Fund for Syria Missions supports the Organisation’s missions and contingency operations related to the Syrian Arab Republic including the work of the Declaration Assessment Team (DAT), the Fact-Finding Mission (FFM), and the Investigation and Identification Team (IIT). Another contribution of £250,000 will be made to the Trust Fund for Training earmarked for assessing and enhancing the capacity of analytical laboratories from African and Latin American and Caribbean Member States. A third contribution of £250,000 will be made to the Trust Fund for Security and Business Continuity earmarked for cyber security. A fourth contribution of £100,000 will be made to the Trust Fund for the Implementation of Article X of the Chemical Weapons Convention. This contribution will go towards further strengthening mitigation and preparedness to respond to chemical incidents in the East Africa Community (EAC), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Regions. The contributions were formalised during a ceremony between the Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the OPCW, H.E. Ambassador Peter Wilson, and OPCW Director-General, H.E. Mr Fernando Arias, which was held at OPCW Headquarters in The Hague. Ambassador Wilson remarked: “I am really pleased to make this year a further substantial donation to the OPCW, which will support the Organisation across a broad range of activities to eliminate the global threat of chemical weapons and benefit all States Parties. ”The Director-General expressed: “I thank the Government of the United Kingdom for these major contributions to support OPCW activities. The United Kingdom has long been a determined supporter of the Chemical Weapons Convention. These contributions will further build the capabilities of our Member States to achieve a world free of chemical weapons.” |
