ISLAMABAD: Ambassador Seljuq Mustansar Tarar, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), has achieved a significant milestone by being elected as the Chairman of the Annual Conference of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC).
The International Convention on Chemical Weapons convened its annual conference in The Hague, where Ambassador Tarar, serving as the Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the OPCW, assumed the role of the conference chair. This marks the first time that Pakistan has been bestowed with the honor of chairing the Conference of States Parties (CSP) of the Chemical Weapons Convention.
The selection process involves the 193-member conference electing a chair for a one-year term, with the chair chosen from a designated region each year. In this instance, the Asian group nominated Ambassador Seljuq Mustansar Tarar, who was subsequently selected by the conference. The Chemical Weapons Convention, ratified by 193 states, is recognized as a comprehensive agreement for the prohibition of all forms of weapons of mass destruction. Pakistan became a party to the Convention in 1997, reaffirming its commitment to the prohibition of the production, proliferation, and stockpiling of chemical weapons.
