Chemical Weapons Convention committee holds meeting

Manama, Jan. 31 (BNA): The National Committee on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons held its 6th meeting, under the chairmanship of the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Shaikha Rana bint Isa bin Daij Al Khalifa. Dr. Shaikha Rana commended the efforts exerted by the members of the committee and supporting teams. She revealed that the Committee had presented to Foreign Affairs Minister its annual report in accordance with Decision 5/2011 that established and formed the committee and presented it for revision by the Ministerial Committee on Legal Affairs at the weekly session of the cabinet. Dr. Shaikha Rana said the plans of the Committee would include future official visits to other countries to benefit from their experiences in the same field and enhance bilateral cooperation and exchange of experiences in implementing the convention. The National Committee discussed the topics on its agenda, followed up the work done by the legal team as well as the topics referred it and decided to accord high priority within its plan of action to the revision and development of national legislation, if need be, in order to fulfill its global commitments. It also discussed ways of developing the mechanisms for granting and renewing licenses for the activities relating to chemicals in accordance with the decisions issued in this regard and in cooperation with concerned authorities in Bahrain. The Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons has banned the production, stockpiling and transfer of chemical weapons by the persons and entities on its territories. Bahrain is one of the first countries to accede to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and among the first countries to enact a law prohibiting chemical weapons and regulating the circulation of chemicals. It has also created the National Committee on Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, composed of members from all ministries and government bodies concerned with the enforcement of the Convention and organised a number of specialised workshops to familiarise them with Convention and its requirements. The Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Ministry thanked all members of the Committee and all the concerned ministries and government bodies for their efforts in making the Committee’s work successful, looking forward for further successes.