The Fourth Special Session of the Conference of the States Parties to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons was held from the 26th to the 27th of June 2018; in The Hague, Netherlands. His Excellency Sibusisiwe Mngomezulu and the Counsellor Ms Antoinette Henwood-Ronald represented the Kingdom of Eswatini at the Session. During the proceedings, Ambassador Mngomezulu delivered a statement to the participants to the session.

 

STATEMENT BY H.E. AMBASSADOR SIBUSISWE MNGOMEZULU

Mr Chairperson, Director-General, Excellencies, Distinguished ladies and gentlemen;

Allow me, from the inception, to acknowledge the statement made in yesterday afternoon’s session by the Africa Group and herein associate our delegation with it fully.

It is with great honour that I take the floor on behalf of His Majesty King Mswati III King and Ingwenyama of the Kingdom of Eswatini, Her Majesty the Queen Mother and the Government and people of the Kingdom of Eswatini.

As this is the first time that I have taken the floor, let me begin by congratulating you for the manner in which you have ably conducted the proceedings of this special session of the Conference, both yesterday and today.

Our delegation reiterates and hereby reinforces our outright condemnation of the use of chemical weapons by any actor under any circumstance, a position our delegation has consistently held here, and in other forums, over the past two decades. Eswatini was one of the first States Parties to ratify the Convention and remains committed to the Convention in its entirety, without singling out any particular provision.

As we deliberate on the mandate of the Organisation, and as we advance the promotion of the principle of universality, it is important that we consider employing policies and strategies that seek to ensure the preservation of environments free of chemical weapons in States which are currently not in possession of chemical weapons or involved in the proliferation of such weapons. These States that have no record of possession also require significant attention, so as to maintain purity from any proliferation of weapons of mass destruction through means such as capacity building, knowledge sharing, technology transfer and any other form of technical assistance. These and other such measures may be employed to enhance such States’ ability to monitor and maintain their low risk status successfully with the support of this Organisation.

In conclusion Mr. Chairperson, let me reiterate that the Kingdom of Eswatini, a State Party which is currently considered to be a low risk territory, free of any chemical weapons activities, is committed to continue its mission to retain this status quo in cooperation with the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. Let me reassure you of our Kingdom’s continued commitment towards the Convention.

It is our delegation’s wish that this statement be made into an official document and be posted to the OPCW website. I thank you.