The Government of the Portuguese Republic has voluntarily contributed €70,000 to two trust funds of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW): the Trust Fund for Syria Missions and the Trust Fund for the Implementation of Article VII to support capacity-building activities for Portuguese-speaking Member States.
The EUR 50,000 contribution will support Syria-related missions and activities carried out by the OPCW Technical Secretariat. Its objectives include establishing the full scope of Syria's chemical weapons programme, verifying all declarable elements, supporting the development and implementation of a destruction plan, and investigating allegations of chemical weapons use, including the identification of those responsible.
The EUR 20,000 funding allocated to the Trust Fund for the Implementation of Article VII to support capacity-building activities for Portuguese-speaking Member States will be used to deepen knowledge and understanding of the CWC, strengthen national capacities to meet obligations under the Convention, and foster cooperation among participating countries.
The voluntary contribution was formalised on 16 March 2026 in a signing ceremony held between the Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Portuguese Republic to the OPCW, H.E. Ms Clara Nunes dos Santos, and the OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Fernando Arias, at the Organisation's Headquarters in The Hague.
"The OPCW is an essential pillar of international disarmament and security architecture, and its mission is a cornerstone in the fight against the illegal use of chemicals, and in particular the use of chemical weapons. The responsibility to support the Organisation should be shared by the international community and these contributions confirm that Portugal remains a steadfast supporter of the Chemical Weapons Convention. The destruction of the Assad-era chemical weapons programme remains one of the greatest challenges ever faced by OPCW and Portugal is hopeful that this voluntary contribution will contribute to the Organisation's work in the Syrian Arab Republic," said Ambassador dos Santos.
"Furthermore, and recognising simultaneously the importance and the complexity of effective national implementation of the Convention, Portugal hopes that the contribution toward the Implementation of Article VII obligations will support the Organisation's capacity-building activities for States Parties from the Community of Portuguese-speaking countries, fostering cooperation and strengthening national frameworks for the implementation of the Convention ," she underlined.
Director-General Arias stated: "I thank Portugal for its timely support to the Technical Secretariat's activities related to Syria and for strengthening the implementation of Article VII, which will support the Organisation's capacity-building activities for States Parties that are members of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries. These contributions help ensure that the OPCW can continue its vital work to support States Parties, enhance preparedness, and uphold the global norm against chemical weapons".
Background
Portugal joined the Chemical Weapons Convention in 1993.
To date, Portugal has contributed a total of EUR 125,000 to trust funds of the OPCW, including the Trust Fund for a Centre for Chemistry and Technology.
Syria acceded to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in 2013 under a stringent verification regime. While Syria submitted an initial declaration of its chemical weapons (CW) programme, the former Syrian government did not declare all its CW programme and attempted - unsuccessfully - to mislead the international community about the overall scope and scale of the Syrian chemical weapons programme. Furthermore, the Technical Secretariat documented and independently confirmed chemical weapons use in Syria both by the former Syrian military forces and by non-state actors, specifically ISIS/ISIL.
The fall of the Assad government in December 2024 created an opportunity to uncover the full scope of Syria's chemical weapons programme and to eliminate it in line with the CWC. In February 2025, the OPCW Director-General visited Syria and held separate meetings with the Syrian President and Foreign Minister. They expressed Syria's recognition of all OPCW mandates, including the identification of perpetrators of chemical weapons use in Syria and reaffirmed Syria's full commitment to fulfilling its obligations under the CWC. In March 2025, the Syrian Foreign Minister visited the OPCW and addressed the Executive Council, where he renewed Syria's commitment to the Convention.
Since the visit by the Director-General to Damascus in February 2025, the OPCW Technical Secretariat deployed several times to Syria, involving visits to suspected locations, sampling, interviews, collection of documents related to Syria's chemical weapons programme, and coordination.
Since November 2025, OPCW has re-established a continuous presence in Syria to facilitate upcoming inventory, destruction and verification-related activities. The work related to the Syrian chemical weapons dossier - verification of declarations and investigation of use of toxic chemicals as weapons - is now coordinated by the OPCW Office of Special Missions.
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.
