On the picture Sri Lanka, H.E. Mr. Adam Maznavee Jaufer Sadiq, India, H.E. Mr. Venu Rajamony, Pakistan, H.E. Mr Shujjat Ali Rathore, Thailand H.E Ms Eksiri Pintaruchi, Viet Nam H.E. Ngô Thi Hòa,  Drs. L.M.C (Lidewijde) Ongering, Australia H.E. Mr. Matthew Neuhaus, Indonesia, H.E. Mr I Gusti Agung Wesaka Puja, Malaysia, H.E.  Mr Ahmad Nazri Bin Yusof, New Zealand, H.E. Ms Lyndal Walker and Japan, H.E. Mr. Hiroshi Inomata. By Roy Lie Atjam. The Hague 17 October 2018, The Ambassador of Vietnam in The Hague, H.E. Ngô Thi Hòa, hosted an informal Asia Ambassadors luncheon at the Hilton. Ambassador Ngô Thi Hòa welcomed her colleagues from: Malaysia, H.E.  Mr Ahmad Nazri Bin Yusof Sri Lanka, H.E. Mr. Adam Maznavee Jaufer Sadiq Indonesia,H.E. Mr I Gusti Agung Wesaka Puja Japan, H.E. Mr. Hiroshi Inomata India, H.E. Mr. Venu Rajamony New Zealand, H.E. Ms Lyndal Walker Pakistan, H.E. Mr Shujjat Ali Rathore Thailand H.E Ms Eksiri Pintaruchi Australia H.E. Mr. Matthew Neuhaus Subsequently, Ambassador Ngô Thi Hòa cordially welcomed the guest of honour.

  Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management. Ms. Ongering previously held the post of Deputy National Coordinator for Security and Counter-terrorism at the Ministry of Security and Justice. The (new)Ambassador of Australia H.E.  Mr. Matthew Neuhaus was also warmly welcomed. The informal working luncheon offered Ms. Ongering an opportunity to exchange views with the group of Ambassadors on policies and experiences of the Netherlands on climate change adaptation and water management, as well as cooperation between the Netherlands and other countries in Asia. Ms. Ongering envisages visiting the island of Bali and China in the very near future. The Asian Ambassadors Luncheon The Hague is an activity of the Asia group which takes place regularly and aims at strengthening cooperation among Asian countries on issues of mutual interest.

     

                            The Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Netherlands, H.E. Mr. Alireza Jahangiri, invited the media to a breakfast meeting to exchange views on the current issues related to  Iran. In a frank conversation, the Ambassador advocated for Iran’s rightfulness and exhorted the international community to uphold the Rule of Law. Welcoming representatives from the media for the breakfast meeting, Ambassador Jahangiri opened the talks with a discussion on Dutch news. Soon, however, the conversation led to the current international situation of Iran, which is facing new challenges in the wake of the U.S. withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, also known as the Iran Nuclear Deal. The Ambassador talked with the media about the historical context predating the much debated nuclear issue. H.E. Mr. Jahangiri noted that “since the Revolution in 1979, Iran has faced all types of hostilities and pressures,” such as severe political and economic sanctions, eight years of war, the assassination of 17000 citizens, coup and regime change attempts, and a war from the media. The international pressure campaign against Iran – the Ambassador noted – also targeted Iran’s nuclear programme. The Ambassador stressed the peaceful nature of such programme, which was needed for energy supply, medical treatment, and industrial applications. While reports from the UN and the International Atomic Energy Agency failed to provide any definitive evidence of the alleged military objectives of Iran’s nuclear programme – Ambassador Jahangiri stressed – Iran still chose the path of negotiations. In spite of the Iran’s indisputable right to a peaceful nuclear programme, the country decided to engage in 12 long years of negotiations with the West, H.E. Mr. Jahangiri noted, with the aim of reaching a win-win outcome. Such outcome was reached in 2015, when the JCPOA was signed by Iran and the so-called P5+1 (the 5 Permanent Members of the UN Security Council plus Germany), and then endorsed by UNSC Reslution 2231. Under the deal, Iran agreed on certain restrictions to its nuclear programme, in exchange for relief from international sanctions. While the IAEA has certified for 12 times the Islamic Republic’s compliance with the JCPOA, in May 2018 President Donald J. Trump announced the unilateral withdrawal of the U.S. from the deal, thus setting the scene for the snap-back of a series of harsh economic sanctions on Iran. Such sanctions already caused major damages to Iran, such as the suspension of KLM and Air France direct flights to Tehran, as well as the halt of Iran’s imports and exports of certain goods. Ambassador Jahangiri stressed that the Islamic Republic of Iran, although being able to reciprocate and re-start its pre-deal nuclear activities, decided to abide by its obligations and responsibilities under the JCPOA. Through a responsible approach based on the Rule of Law – the Ambassador explained – Iran filed a lawsuit in the International Court of Justice, claiming violations on the side of the U.S. to the 1955 “Treaty of amity, Economic Relations and Consular Rights” between the U.S. and Iran. After holding hearings, the Court issued provisional measures ordering the U.S. to free the exports of medical goods, food stuffs, and civil aviation spare parts to Iran. Such decision – H.E. Mr. Jahangiri stressed – was adopted unanimously by the ICJ judges, including the United State’s judge.

However – he regretted – the U.S. decided to adopt a “bullying reaction” it withdrew from the Treaty of Amity, as it had previously done from UNESCO, the UN Human Rights Council, the Paris Agreement, NAFTA, the TPP, as well as the JCPOA. Such withdrawal is itself a breach of paragraph 3 of the Court’s order, in which the parties are asked to refrain from any action which might aggravate or extend the dispute. Referring to the Court’s order, which is legally binding upon all countries, Ambassador Jahangiri called on the international community to abandon all restrictions in relation to the cases covered by the order, and to refuse to cooperate with the U.S. in its “unlawful impose of unilateral sanctions.” In particular, the Ambassador called on the EU to “take practical measures to preserve the track of diplomacy, multilateralism and the rule of law.” On November 4th, a new round of U.S. sanctions on Iran is set to take effect. In the meanwhile, the whole world closely follows the current situation of Iran.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte y former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. In October 2018, The Hague became the theater for one of the most significant acts on climate change so far: the launch of the Global Commission on Adaptation. The initiative, launched by a series of high level personalities with the support of several countries, calls for stepping up efforts to mitigate the negative effects of climate change globally. The Global Commission on Adaptation was launched and supported by a large number of high-level political leaders, including former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, Dutch Minister of Infrastructure Cora van Nieuwenhuizen. The initiative was supported by a wide range of countries from all over the world, namely India, China, South Africa, Germany, Canada, Mexico, the Netherlands, the UK, Denmark, Argentina, Bangladesh, Costa Rica, Indonesia, Ethiopia, Senegal, Marshall Island, Grenada. Moreover, the Global Center on Adaptation and the World Resource Institute are the Commission’s managing partners.

Among its different tasks, the Global Commission will supervise the elaboration of a report, containing precise recommendations, that will be presented in 2019 at the UN Climate Summit. The report will be elaborated by several experts and institutions from different parts of the world, and will not only highlight risks related to climate change, but also present concrete actions to be taken by governments, companies, and citizens to address such issue. In doing so, the Commission will form coalitions, bringing together the private sector, civil society, and other stakeholders in order to align actions in tackling the challenge of climate change. Speaking about climate change, Minister van Nieuwenhuizen noted that the world is facing one of the biggest challenges in its entire history, and highlighted that the Commission is here “to begin changing the course of history and to secure the future of our global societies.” Similarly, Dutch PM Rutte stressed that tackling climate change is an extremely urgent issue, for which planning and cooperation will be needed. In this sense, he noted that the Netherlands has some expertise to share on water management, and it is already cooperating with countries such as Indonesia and Bangladesh. Speaking about the fight against climate change negative effects, former UNSG Ban Ki-moon stressed the importance of adaptation, which is “the smarter thing to do,” but also noted that “not a single country can do it alone.” On this line, the German Minister of Economy advocated for the protection of the least fortunate. As World Bank CEO Georgieva noted, “it is a cruel irony that those who have least contribute to the climate change are the ones who are affected and least able to prepare.” In a touching declaration, the President of the Marshall Island described the effects of rising sea levels in the country, which “cannot be abandoned.” Also, a number of high-level contributions, such as those of Microsoft founder Bill Gates, UK Prime Minister Theresa May, and incoming UN High Commissioner for Refugees Michelle Bachelet, came in via video. Bill Gates strongly praised the Commission’s focus on actions and results, and advocated for a prominent role of technology in leading the adaptation effort. Michelle Bachelet too contributed via video to the Commission’s launch, stressing that “we need to ensure all people have the tools to adapt” to the emerging challenges related to climate change. In addition to the aforementioned speakers, several other high-level leaders attended the launch as part of the Commission: among them, the Prime Minister of Grenada, the President of the African Development Bank, the Secretary General of the IFRC, the Executive Secretary and the former Executive Secretary of UNFCCC, a Senator of the Philippines, a former Finance Minister of Mexico, the German Minister of economy, the Minister of Ecology of China, the Mayors of Paris and Miami, members of the UK Environment Agency, and the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Costa Rica. Each one contributed with short and focused speeches on particular issues. Also some ambassadors attended the event in support to global actions on climate change: among them, the ambassadors of Japan, India, Costa Rica, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Argentina, the Philippines, Mexico, and Denmark. While climate change remains a persistent and dangerous global challenge, it is encouraging to note that such a wide range of countries and high-profile leaders are actively trying to address this challenge.      

OPCW Director-General, H.E. Mr. Fernando Arias, and Belgium’s Permanent Representative to the OPCW, H.E. Mr. Christian LePage. The Hague, Netherlands — 22 October 2018 — The Government of the Kingdom of Belgium has contributed €2 million 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 through the construction of a new facility. The new facility will be known as the OPCW Centre for Chemistry and Technology. The donation was formalised with an exchange of letters by the OPCW Director-General, H.E. Mr Fernando Arias, and Belgium’s Permanent Representative to the OPCW, H.E. Mr Christian Lepage, at a signing ceremony on 19 October 2018 at the OPCW headquarters in The Hague. “I would like to express my appreciation to the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium on behalf of the OPCW for this generous contribution that will help to ensure that the Organisation remains fit-for-purpose, as well as for Belgium’s longstanding collaboration with the OPCW in upholding the global ban on chemical weapons,” the Director-General said. “This project, which serves the goal of eliminating all chemical weapons, is an important priority to Belgium. As the country where the first mass chemical gas attack took place during the First World War, we are highly mindful of the human consequences of the use of chemical weapons,” expressed H.E. Mr Christian Lepage. The OPCW Laboratory and Equipment Store are central to the effectiveness and integrity of the verification regime of the Chemical Weapons Convention, and they also contribute to the OPCW’s capacity building and international cooperation activities. However, the current facility is no longer fit-for-purpose due to aging infrastructure, space constraints, larger workloads, and new missions with new areas of work. A new facility is required to meet the demands of OPCW Member States for increased verification and capacity-building activities, and for the OPCW to keep pace with developments in science and technology and new chemical weapons threats. The OPCW Technical Secretariat is developing a detailed project plan for the construction of the Centre for Chemistry and Technology, and a Trust Fund for voluntary contributions has been established to secure the required resources for the project. The Director-General concluded with an appeal to all OPCW Member States in a position to make voluntary contributions to do so. He reiterated that “All contributions, regardless of size, are greatly appreciated”.

By Roy Lie Atjam. A remarkable bicycling spree in The Hague, it brought a good number of enthusiasts members of the diplomatic community together on Saturday 20 October 2018. The objective was inclusion, informal mingling which might lead to lasting contacts and having fun. The tour departed from Hotel Crowne Plaza and travelled in the direction of downtown Den Haag, parliament square, haagschebos and other interesting historical and tourist sites. For additional Kim Vermaat’s pictures, please open the following link: https://www.flickr.com/photos/109407424@N02/albums/72157699504162562

The bicyclists were enthusiastic, encouraging feedbacks have been received, some have posted pictures of the tour on social media. Following the bike ride, the participants met for lunch at a restaurant in the Rosarium  Westbroekpark. Diplomat magazine highly appreciates the participation of all who have contributed to our Third Biking Spree.

Such were: diplomats from Mexico, Bulgaria, Russia, Italy, Sweden, India and South Africa. Also Ambassadors from Croatia, Finland, Malaysia. Interesting to note, the Ambassador of Malaysia brought along his personal guests, among them a former member of parliament. Other participants were the IOM Chief of Mission and a representative of the EU parliament.

On the picture  speaker Mr. Bernardo J. García García, Chair Hispanic Society of The Hague,  Ms. Edith Bergansius,  Ambassador of Spain H.E.  Ms. María J. Alonso and Mr.  Luis Tejero González, cultural attaché of the Spanish Embassy. Conference by Dr. Bernardo J. García García, Department of Modern and Contemporary History of the Complutense University. To mark the beginning of the ’80 years war’ in 1568, the Spanish Embassy in The Hague, Instituto Cervantes (Utrecht) and the Hispanic Society of The Hague organized the  lecture Pacification strategies of the Dutch Revolt. Ideas, means and actors in a cultural perspective at Carlton Ambassador Hotel, The Hague, in Spanish language, principally for  the members of the Asociación Hispánica de La Haya. In 2009, on the occasion of 400 years of the 12 years Truce, the Asociación Hispánica de La Haya had organised a ‘Spanish Day’ in the Historical Museum of The Hague with Bernardo J. García García as key speaker, so they did not hesitate to invite him again for the 450 years conmemmoration. Other than being an excellent speaker, he was also in charge of several expositions in Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands related to this specific subjet. In order to maximize his visit from Madrid, he also spoke in the Rijksmuseum -together with two other speakers- on Sunday, October 14.