Day of Remembrance for All Victims of the Use of Chemical Weapons (30/11)

Day of Remembrance for all Victims of Chemical Warfare has been celebrated since 2006. A year earlier, the X Conference of the States Parties to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction had been held.

The delegates decided to establish a new international day and chose the date — for it on April 29. On this day in 1997, the Convention entered into force. But in 2015, at its 20th session, the Conference of the — States Parties to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction decided that the Day of Remembrance for All Victims of the Use of Chemical Weapons would be celebrated annually on November 30, or the first day of the beginning of its regular session.

Chemical weapons were first used during the First World War (1914-1918), first by Germany and then by other countries participating in the war. As a result, about 100 thousand people died and a million were poisoned. Subsequently, chemical weapons were used by Italy against Ethiopia, Japan against China, the United States against Korea and Vietnam, during the Iran-Iraq conflict. In 1993, in Paris, the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction was signed by plenipotentiaries of 130 countries, which entered into force in 1997.

Parties to the Convention have undertaken not to develop, produce, otherwise acquire, stockpile or retain, transfer, use or make military preparations for their use; not to assist, encourage or induce anyone in any way to violate the Convention; not to use chemical riot control agents as means of warfare; destroy all stockpiles of chemical weapons and their production facilities no later than 10 years after the entry into force of the Convention. In 2006, this period was extended by 5 years. The Third Conference of the — States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention, held on 8–19 April 2013 in The Hague (Netherlands), adopted by consensus a political declaration reaffirming the «unconditional commitment of the » States Parties to the global ban on chemical weapons.

There are 193 states parties to the Convention that must destroy all declared stockpiles of chemical weapons. 98% of the world's chemical weapons stockpiles are in the hands of – member states of the Convention. However, a number of states have not acceded to the Convention, and they have no obligations to the international community.

By celebrating this day, UN member states honor the memory of the victims of chemical weapons, and also reaffirm the commitment of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to eliminating the threat of chemical weapons, which thereby contributes to the achievement of the goals of peace, security and multilateralism.

The main task of the OPCW — is to monitor how the process of destruction of chemical weapons is progressing in the world, and to take measures to ensure that they are no longer produced. In addition, the organization provides assistance to states that are at risk of using chemical weapons and encourages international cooperation in the development of peaceful chemistry.

OPCW activities are actively deployed in many countries around the world. Already, the majority of States parties to the Convention have reported on legislative and administrative measures taken in this area. Meanwhile, work to destroy chemical weapons continues.

A total of 71,511 metric tons or 98.9% of the world's declared chemical weapons stockpiles (72,304 metric tons) have been destroyed, according to OPCW data as of October 31, 2021. Of the declared 97 chemical weapons production facilities, — 74 were destroyed, — 23 are used for peaceful purposes.



Postcard «November 30 — Remembrance Day for all victims of the use of chemical weapons»

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