France has reaffirmed its longstanding support for the work of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) through its new voluntary contribution of €591,000 to support key OPCW activities.
The contribution was formalised on 15 April 2025 in a signing ceremony held between the Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the French Republic to the OPCW, H.E. Mr François Alabrune, and the OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Fernando Arias, at the OPCW's Headquarters in The Hague.
The voluntary contribution will support three OPCW Trust Funds:
Trust Fund for Syria Missions: €200,000 will be dedicated for the work of the OPCW in Syria.
Trust Fund for the Implementation of Article X: €241,000 will be used to support key capacity-building initiatives, such as CHEMEX Africa 2025, an Integrated Advanced Course and Exercise for OPCW French-speaking African Member States, as well as provision of OPCW assistance and protection activities in Ukraine.
Trust Fund for Training: €150,000 will be utilised to support a biotoxin analysis initiative for Africa and an international technical seminar to strengthen the global academic network in the field of chemical disarmament.
"The Organisation can always count on France's support in achieving its mandate. We are delighted to be able to make this additional contribution in order to enable the Technical Secretariat to realise its missions regarding the Syrian chemical weapons dossier, " said Ambassador Alabrune.
H.E. Mr François Alabrune, Permanent Representative of the French Republic, and Ambassador Fernando Arias, OPCW Director-General.
"Ensuring that the Secretariat has sufficient financial means to respond to Ukraine's needs is a priority for us. Also, we are very pleased to contribute to the OPCW's Article X programmes, such as CHEMEX Africa, reinforcing capacities in French-speaking African countries," he added.
Director-General Arias expressed his appreciation for France's voluntary contribution and important partnership with the OPCW: "France plays a vital role in strengthening the implementation of the Convention. This generous contribution reflects France's deep commitment to uphold the global norm against chemical weapons and achieve a world where chemistry is only used to advance progress, peace and prosperity."
Background
France has been an active member of the OPCW since the Chemical Weapons Convention entered into force in 1997. France is a member of the OPCW Executive Council, the governing body of the Organisation.
To date, France has made voluntary contributions totalling €11,236,052 to various OPCW trust funds.
As the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention, the OPCW, with its 193 Member States, oversees the global endeavour to permanently eliminate chemical weapons. Since the Convention's entry into force in 1997, it is the most successful disarmament treaty eliminating an entire class of weapons of mass destruction.
In 2023, the OPCW verified that all chemical weapons stockpiles declared by the 193 States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention since 1997 - totalling 72,304 metric tonnes of chemical agents - have been irreversibly destroyed under the OPCW's strict verification regime.
For its extensive efforts in eliminating chemical weapons, the OPCW received the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize.
