The Government of the Slovak Republic has contributed €20,000 to the Trust Fund for Syria Missions at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
The contribution will be used towards the full elimination of the Syrian Chemical Weapons Programme as well as establishing facts surrounding the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria, in accordance with the Convention and the relevant decisions of the policy-making organs of the OPCW.
The voluntary contribution was formalised on 5 May 2023 in a signing ceremony held between the Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Slovak Republic to the OPCW, H.E. Mr Juraj Macháč, and the OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Fernando Arias, at the OPCW's Headquarters in The Hague, the Netherlands.
"As a steadfast supporter of multilateralism, Slovakia attaches great importance to the work of the OPCW in achieving the goals set out in the Chemical Weapons Convention, most importantly to have a world free of chemical weapons, which is indispensable for international peace and security and the safe life of present, as well as future generations," said Ambassador Macháč.
"With the present voluntary contribution to the OPCW Trust Fund for Syria Missions, Slovakia wishes to assist the OPCW in implementing its Syria-related mandated activities which are more relevant than ever, considering, among others, the latest findings of the IIT published in its third report," he emphasised. "We reiterate our strong conviction that the use of chemical weapons by anyone, at any time, under any circumstances is illegal and unacceptable."
The Director-General stated: "I express my sincere appreciation to the Slovak Republic for its continuing support to the OPCW's mission to permanently eradicate chemical weapons. This contribution will support the OPCW to continue its critical work on the Syrian chemical weapons dossier and to uphold the norms and principles of the Chemical Weapons Convention."
Background
The Slovak Republic has been an active member of the OPCW since 1997. The Slovak Republic is a member of the OPCW Executive Council, the governing body of the Organisation.
The Declaration Assessment Team was established in 2014 to engage the relevant Syrian authorities to resolve the identified gaps, inconsistencies, and discrepancies in the Syrian declaration. The Fact-Finding Mission was set up in the same year in response to persistent allegations of chemical weapon attacks in Syria, with the task to establish facts surrounding allegations of the use of toxic chemicals for hostile purposes. The Investigation and Identification Team began its work in 2019 and is responsible for identifying the perpetrators of the use of chemical weapons in Syria.
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.
Over 99% of all declared chemical weapon stockpiles have been destroyed under OPCW verification. For its extensive efforts in eliminating chemical weapons, the OPCW received the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize.
