The Chemical Weapons Convention

The most complex and comprehensive disarmament treaty ever to be adopted, the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) is intended to provide robust assurance that chemical weapons will not be developed, produced, stockpiled, used or transferred. To implement and enforce the CWC and verify the ongoing elimination of declared chemical weapons production capacity and stockpiles, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) inspects military and industrial sites in dozens of countries. OPCW membership now embraces over 95 per cent of the world’s population and 98 per cent of the relevant global chemical industry. This book provides an in-depth explanation of the notable achievements of the CWC in a relatively short span since 1997, and examines the issues that must be addressed to ensure the regime’s continuing vitality in the context of dynamic changes in the security environment, and in science, industry and technology. Featuring contributions from government and OPCW officials and experts in international law, industry, government and media, this volume highlights the challenges in implementation and assesses and recommends the means necessary to preserve the global ban on chemical weapons in perpetuity. “Provides an excellent survey of key issues related to the implementation of the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), as well as the challenges and opportunities facing the treaty in the coming years.” Jonathan B. Tucker, Center for Nonproliferation Studies, Monterey Institute of International Studies, California, USA. “Outstanding quality, easy to read, informative and authoritative. A unique and important book. More than that: the authors are, in several cases, practitioners expert in problems of CWC implementation, meaning that they speak with unrivalled authority.” J. P. Perry Robinson, Professorial Fellow, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK.