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Policy

Chemical Arms Treaty group meets

December 11, 2006 | A version of this story appeared in Volume 84, Issue 50

The 11th session of nations that are party to the Chemical Weapons Convention took place in The Hague last week, and discussions centered on compliance with Article 7 of the treaty. Article 7 requires participating nations to undertake seven "national implementation measures." Among these are the development of domestic legislation implementing the treaty, the issuance of regulations banning activities prohibited by the treaty, and the designation of a national authority. The authority tracks the private chemical industry and serves as a point of contact for the treaty's oversight body and other member states. Currently, 47% of the 181 member states have complied fully with Article 7 and other articles of the treaty. About 172 member states have designated a national authority, up from 147 last year. Also, 72 member states, roughly 40% of all participating nations, have written domestic implementing legislation, up from 59 a year ago. Nations out of compliance with Article 7 will have another year to comply. Peter Kaiser, spokesman for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the organization that implements the international treaty, says, "Without full implementation, you run the risk of allowing criminals and terrorists to make and use these weapons."

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