In the picture Ambassador of Kazakhstan, H.E. Magzhan Ilyassov.
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — 4 July 2019 — The Government of Kazakhstan has contributed €10,000 to a special Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Trust Fund to support the project to upgrade the current OPCW Laboratory and Equipment Store. This project will result in the construction of a new facility, the OPCW Centre for Chemistry and Technology (“ChemTech Centre”).
The contribution was formalised yesterday in a ceremony involving the exchange of letters between OPCW Director-General, H.E. Mr Fernando Arias, and the Permanent Representative of Kazakhstan to the OPCW, H.E. Ambassador Magzhan Ilyassov, at OPCW Headquarters in The Hague.
Ambassador Ilyassov remarked: “Kazakhstan has always been and remains a strong supporter of the CWC and the OPCW. Contributing to the new Centre for Chemistry and Technology is an important way to strengthen the OPCW’s capacity in developing even more confidence in the verification regime. The Centre is a common endeavor that will further unite OPCW Member States in achieving a world free of chemical weapons.”
Director-General Arias expressed his gratitude to the Government of Kazakhstan for its support and appealed to all OPCW States Parties in a position to make voluntary contributions to do so, emphasising that the new ChemTech Centre will be a resource for all States Parties and that “all contributions, regardless of size, are greatly appreciated”.
So far, sixteen States Parties and the European Union have contributed or pledged to contribute financially to the project, and a considerable amount has been raised to date.
