| FOURTH REVIEW CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE CONVENTION ON THE PROHIBITION OF THE DEVELOPMENT, PRODUCTION AND STOCKPILING OF BACTERIOLOGICAL (BIOLOGICAL) AND TOXIN WEAPONS AND ON THEIR DESTRUCTION |
Distr. GENERAL
BWC/CONF.IV/SR.1
ENGLISH |
|
Geneva, 25 November - 6 December 1996
OPENING OF THE CONFERENCE BY THE PROVISIONAL SECRETARY-GENERAL
ELECTION OF THE PRESIDENT
MESSAGE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS
* In accordance with rule 42 of the rules of procedure of the
Conference, no summary records were prepared for meetings, or
parts of meetings, devoted to consideration of agenda item 10
(a) - General debate.
This record is subject to correction.
Corrections should be submitted in one of the working languages.
They should be set forth in a memorandum and also incorporated
in a copy of the record. They should be sent within one week
of the date of this document to the Official Records Editing
Section, room E.4108, Palais des Nations, Geneva.
Any corrections to the records of the meetings of this Conference
will be consolidated in a single corrigendum, to be issued shortly
after the end of the Conference.
ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA
SUBMISSION OF THE FINAL REPORT OF THE PREPARATORY COMMITTEE
ADOPTION OF THE RULES OF PROCEDURE
ELECTION OF THE VICE-PRESIDENTS OF THE CONFERENCE AND CHAIRMEN
AND VICE-CHAIRMEN OF THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE, THE DRAFTING
COMMITTEE AND THE CREDENTIALS COMMITTEE
CREDENTIALS OF REPRESENTATIVES TO THE CONFERENCE
(a) APPOINTMENT OF THE CREDENTIALS COMMITTEE
CONFIRMATION OF THE NOMINATION OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
PROGRAMME OF WORK
REVIEW OF THE OPERATION OF THE CONVENTION AS PROVIDED FOR IN ITS
ARTICLE XII
(a) GENERAL DEBATE
The meeting was called to order at 11.15 a.m.
OPENING OF THE CONFERENCE BY THE PROVISIONAL SECRETARY-GENERAL
(item 1 of the provisional agenda)
1. The PROVISIONAL SECRETARY-GENERAL welcomed participants
and declared open the Fourth Review Conference of the Parties
to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production
and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons
and on Their Destruction.
ELECTION OF THE PRESIDENT (item 2 (a) of the provisional agenda)
2. The PROVISIONAL SECRETARY-GENERAL drew attention to
paragraph 11 of the report of the Preparatory Committee (BWC/CONF.IV/1),
which stated that the Committee had agreed to recommend to the
Fourth Review Conference that Sir Michael Weston (United
Kingdom) should preside over the Conference.
3. Sir Michael Weston (United Kingdom) was elected President
by acclamation.
4. The PRESIDENT thanked all delegations for the honour
bestowed on him and assured them that he would endeavour to conduct
the Committee's proceedings in the most orderly, transparent and
efficient manner possible. In order to carry out the mission incumbent
on it under article XII of the Convention, the Conference
must give particular attention to three issues that had been highlighted
during the Third Review Conference: the impact of scientific and
technological developments relating to the Convention, the imminent
entry into force of the Convention on Chemical Weapons, and consideration
of the conclusions of the work of the Ad Hoc Group of Governmental
Experts to Identify and Examine Potential Verification Measures
from a Scientific and Technical Standpoint (VEREX) and of the
Ad Hoc Group established by the Special Conference in 1994. He
was confident that he could rely on the full cooperation of all
delegations and hoped that there would be an opportunity to discuss
at length those matters, and the many other important issues on
the Conference agenda, in the course of both the general debate
and the detailed article_by_article review.
MESSAGE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS (item 2
(b) of the provisional agenda)
5. Mr. PETROVSKY (Director-General of the United Nations
Office at Geneva) read out a message to the Review Conference
from the Secretary-General. In that message, the Secretary-General
said that the Biological Weapons Convention was clearly a legal
instrument highly appreciated by the international community,
since there were nearly 140 States parties to it. The parties
to the Convention had consistently shown their determination to
consolidate that multilateral instrument, which was the first
to ban an entire category of weapons of mass destruction. In 1986,
they had initiated a set of confidence-building measures, which
had been revised and improved at the Third Review Conference and
which continued to be implemented on a voluntary basis. Five years
later, in 1991, developments in the Persian Gulf and the general
international climate had led the Conference to recognize formally
the need for more effective verification measures. That fact had
led to the establishment of the VEREX Group, which had submitted
its report in 1993. The Special Conference held in 1994 to evaluate
that report from a political perspective had established an Ad Hoc
Group to consider appropriate measures, including possible verification
measures and draft proposals to strengthen the Convention, to
be included, as appropriate, in a legally binding instrument.
That Group had decided to intensify its work with a view to completing
it as soon as possible, but the significant progress that it had
already made towards identifying a preliminary framework and elaborating
potential basic elements of a legally binding instrument would
be considered by the Conference, which, it was to be hoped, would
extend its full support to the Ad Hoc group.
6. There was a clear need for a coherent regime to enhance compliance
with the Convention since a State party to the Convention had
been able to acquire a full-scale biological weapons programme.
However, the elaboration of such a regime was an extremely complex
task because the States parties were convinced that full implementation
of the provisions of the Convention should not hamper economic
and technological development or international cooperation in
the field of peaceful biological activities. Since the need for
access to advanced technology would become increasingly acute
as countries sought to develop, strenuous efforts must be made
to ensure that the desired verification regime achieved a delicate
balance between the need for access to technology and the need
to prevent the proliferation of sensitive technology capable of
being used for military purposes. The task undertaken by the Fourth
Review Conference was, therefore, not a routine exercise. As had
been demonstrated in the case of other multilateral disarmament
instruments, there was a trend towards making the best possible
use of the review process itself in order to safeguard and enhance
the effectiveness of treaties. He encouraged the participants
to follow that example in the case of the Convention on Biological
Weapons and wished them every success in their work.
ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA (item 3 of the provisional agenda)
7. The PRESIDENT drew attention to the provisional agenda
recommended by the Preparatory Committee in annex I of its
report (BWC/CONF.IV/1).
8. Mr. NEJAD (Islamic Republic of Iran) said his Government
had officially submitted a proposal for an amendment to the Convention,
which he wished the Conference to consider under a special agenda
item.
9. The PRESIDENT suggested that the agenda recommended
by the Preparatory Committee should be adopted on the understanding
that consultations would be held on the issue raised by the representative
of the Islamic Republic of Iran and a decision taken on the matter
at the conclusion of those consultations.
10. It was so decided.
SUBMISSION OF THE FINAL REPORT OF THE PREPARATORY COMMITTEE (agenda
item 4) (BWC/CONF.IV/1)
11. The PRESIDENT, speaking as former Chairman of the Preparatory
Committee, introduced the Committee's final report, noting with
satisfaction that the Committee's decisions and recommendations
had been adopted by consensus thanks to the spirit of good will
and cooperation demonstrated by the participants. Particular thanks
were due to the Vice-Chairmen of the Committee and the group coordinators.
He also wished to express his appreciation to the United Nations
Secretary-General and his staff for their help.
12. The Preparatory Committee had decided to transmit to the Conference
a document containing background information on the participation
of States parties in the agreed confidence-building measures (BWC/CONF.IV/2),
a background information document on compliance by States parties
with all their obligations under the Convention (BWC/CONF.IV/3)
and a background paper on new scientific and technological developments
relevant to the Convention (BWC/CONF.IV/4).
ADOPTION OF THE RULES OF PROCEDURE (agenda item 5)
13. The PRESIDENT drew attention to the provisional rules
of procedure, which appeared in annex II to the report of
the Preparatory Committee. In that regard, he noted that since
the Committee had not taken a final decision concerning article 44.5
on non-governmental organizations (NGOs), it had decided that
the Review Conference should decide whether to authorize NGOs
to make statements at the Conference. At the end of the informal
consultations held in New York during the preceding month,
it had been decided to interrupt the work of the Plenary Committee
at 4.30 p.m. on Wednesday, 27 November in order to hear
presentations by NGOs.
14. The rules of procedure were adopted.
ELECTION OF THE VICE-PRESIDENTS OF THE CONFERENCE AND CHAIRMEN
AND VICE-CHAIRMEN OF THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE, THE DRAFTING
COMMITTEE AND THE CREDENTIALS COMMITTEE (agenda item 6)
15. The PRESIDENT said that, under rule 5 of the rules
of procedure and paragraph 19 of the report of the Preparatory
Committee, the Conference had to elect 20 Vice-Presidents:
10 members of the Group of Non-Aligned and Other States, 6 members
of the Western Group and 4 members of the Group of Eastern European
States.
16. Following consultations in the various regional groups, the
following candidates had been proposed:
Group of Non-Aligned and Other States: Bangladesh, Brazil, China,
Cuba, India, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Mexico, Nigeria, Peru
and South Africa;
Western Group: Canada, Germany, Ireland (on behalf of the European Union),
Japan, Netherlands and the United States of America;
Group of Eastern European States: the Russian Federation and three
other countries still to be determined.
17. The States parties named were elected Vice-Presidents by
acclamation.
18. The PRESIDENT added that the Conference must elect
a Chairman and two Vice-Chairmen of the Committee of the Whole,
a Chairman and two Vice-Chairmen of the Drafting Committee, in
accordance with paragraph 18 of the report of the Preparatory
Committee, and a Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Credentials
Committee. Following consultations, it had been recommended that
the Committee of the Whole should be chaired by Mr. Berguño
(Chile) and the Drafting Committee by Mr. Toth (Hungary).
19. Ms. CASTAÑO (Colombia) nominated her delegation
to chair the Credentials Committee.
20. Mr. Berguño, Mr. Toth and Colombia were elected
Chairmen of the Committee of the Whole, the Drafting Committee
and the Credentials Committee, respectively, by acclamation.
21. The PRESIDENT said that, following consultations, it
had been recommended that Mr. Norberg (Sweden) and a representative
of the Group of Eastern European States should be Vice-Chairmen
of the Committee of the Whole, that a representative of Norway
and a representative of Indonesia should be Vice-Chairmen of the
Drafting Committee and that a representative of the Group of Eastern
European States should be Vice-Chairman of the Credentials Committee.
22. It was so decided.
CREDENTIALS OF REPRESENTATIVES TO THE CONFERENCE (agenda item
7)
(a) APPOINTMENT OF THE CREDENTIALS COMMITTEE
23. The PRESIDENT said that, under rule 3 of the rules
of procedure, the Conference had also to appoint five further
members of the Credentials Committee on the proposal of the President.
Following consultations with delegations, he proposed the appointment
of representatives of the following States: Belgium, Cuba, New
Zealand, South Africa and one country from the Group of Eastern
European States.
24. It was so decided.
25. The PRESIDENT once again reminded delegations
which had not yet done so that they should present their credentials
as soon as possible.
CONFIRMATION OF THE NOMINATION OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL (agenda
item 8)
26. The PRESIDENT noted that rule 10 of the rules
of procedure provided for a Secretary-General of the Conference.
In paragraph 25 of its report, the Preparatory Committee had decided
to invite the Secretary-General of the United Nations, in
consultation with the members of the Preparatory Committee, to
nominate an official to act on behalf of the Committee as provisional
Secretary-General of the Review Conference. The SecretaryGeneral
of the United Nations had nominated Mr. Ogunsola Ogunbanwo,
Senior Coordinator of the United Nations Disarmament Fellowship
Training and Advisory Services Programme in the Department of
Political Affairs. If there were no objections, he would take
it that the Conference wished to confirm Mr. Ogunbanwo as
SecretaryGeneral of the Conference.
27. It was so decided.
PROGRAMME OF WORK (agenda item 9) 28. The PRESIDENT drew attention to the indicative programme of work in document BWC/CONF.IV/INF.1, which had been established at an informal meeting
of States parties in New York during the month of October. If
there was no objection, he would take it that the Committee wished
to adopt the indicative programme.
29. It was so decided.
30. The PRESIDENT announced that four States - Algeria,
Israel, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Kazakstan
- had applied for observer status in accordance with rule 44,
paragraph 2 (a), of the rules of procedure. If there
was no objection, he would take it that the Conference wished
to accede to that request.
31. It was so decided.
32. The PRESIDENT announced that the International
Committee of the Red Cross had also applied for observer
status and for permission to make a short statement in that capacity
at the end of the opening plenary meeting. If there were no comments,
he would take it that the Conference wished to accede to that
request.
33. It was so decided.
REVIEW OF THE OPERATION OF THE CONVENTION AS PROVIDED FOR IN ITS
ARTICLE XII (agenda item 10)
(a) GENERAL DEBATE
34. Mr. TOTH (Hungary), Mr. EMMANUELLI (France),
Mr. TAYLOR (Ireland) (speaking on behalf of the European
Union) and Mr. HERBY (International Committee of the
Red Cross) made statements.
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| FOURTH REVIEW CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE CONVENTION ON THE PROHIBITION OF THE DEVELOPMENT, PRODUCTION AND STOCKPILING OF BACTERIOLOGICAL (BIOLOGICAL) AND TOXIN WEAPONS AND ON THEIR DESTRUCTION |
Distr. GENERAL
BWC/CONF.IV/SR.2 Original: ENGLISH |
|
Geneva, 25 November - 6 December 1996
REVIEW OF THE OPERATION OF THE CONVENTION AS PROVIDED FOR IN ITS
ARTICLE XII (continued)
(a) GENERAL DEBATE (continued)
ELECTION OF THE VICE-PRESIDENTS OF THE CONFERENCE AND CHAIRMEN
AND VICE-CHAIRMEN OF THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE, THE DRAFTING
COMMITTEE AND THE CREDENTIALS COMMITTEE (continued)
* In accordance with rule 42 of the rules of procedure of the
Conference, no summary records were prepared for meetings, or
parts of meetings, devoted to consideration of agenda item 10
(a) - General debate.
This record is subject to correction.
Corrections should be submitted in one of the working languages.
They should be set forth in a memorandum and also incorporated
in a copy of the record. They should be sent within one week
of the date of this document to the Official Records Editing
Section, room E.4018, Palais des Nations, Geneva.
Any corrections to the records of the meetings of this Conference
will be consolidated in a single corrigendum, to be issued shortly
after the end of the Conference.
REVIEW OF THE OPERATION OF THE CONVENTION AS PROVIDED FOR IN ITS
ARTICLE XII (agenda item 10) (continued)
(a) GENERAL DEBATE (continued)
1. Statements were made by Mr. HOFER (Switzerland), Mr.
SOMOL (Czech Republic), Mr. GRECU (Romania), Mr.
VERGNE SABOIA (Brazil), Mr. MIDDLETON (New Zealand)
and Mr. ABUAH (Nigeria).
ELECTION OF THE VICE-PRESIDENTS OF THE CONFERENCE AND CHAIRMEN
AND VICE-CHAIRMEN OF THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE, THE DRAFTING
COMMITTEE AND THE CREDENTIALS COMMITTEE (agenda item 6) (continued)
2. The PRESIDENT said that, following consultations in
the Eastern European regional group concerning the officers to
be elected pursuant to rule 5 of the rules of procedure,
Poland, Romania and Slovenia had been proposed for the three remaining
posts of Vice-President, Belarus had been proposed for the remaining
post of Vice-Chairman of the Committee of the Whole, Slovakia
had been proposed for the remaining post of Vice-Chairman of the
Credentials Committee and the Czech Republic had been proposed
for membership of the Credentials Committee.
3. The States parties named were elected to those posts by
acclamation.
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| FOURTH REVIEW CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE CONVENTION ON THE PROHIBITION OF THE DEVELOPMENT, PRODUCTION AND STOCKPILING OF BACTERIOLOGICAL (BIOLOGICAL) AND TOXIN WEAPONS AND ON THEIR DESTRUCTION |
Distr. GENERAL
BWC/CONF.IV/SR.3
ENGLISH |
|
Geneva, 25 November - 6 December 1996
REVIEW OF THE OPERATION OF THE CONVENTION AS PROVIDED FOR IN ITS
ARTICLE XII:
GENERAL DEBATE (continued)
* In accordance with rule 42 of the rules of procedure of the
Conference, no summary records were prepared for meetings, or
parts of meetings, devoted to consideration of agenda item 10
(a) - General debate.
This record is subject to correction.
Corrections should be submitted in one of the working languages.
They should be set forth in a memorandum and also incorporated
in a copy of the record. They should be sent within one week
of the date of this document to the Official Records Editing
Section, room E.4018, Palais des Nations, Geneva.
Any corrections to the records of the meetings of this Conference
will be consolidated in a single corrigendum, to be issued shortly
after the end of the Conference.
REVIEW OF THE OPERATION OF THE CONVENTION AS PROVIDED FOR IN ITS
ARTICLE XII (agenda item 10) (continued)
(a) GENERAL DEBATE (continued)
Ms. GHOSE (India), Mr. DAVIS (United Kingdom), Mr.
HOLUM (United States of America), Mr. SELEBI (South Africa),
Mr. SHA Zukang (China), Mr. MOHER (Canada), Ms. KUROKOCHI
(Japan), Mr. AKRAM (Pakistan), Mr. BARTOLO (Malta)
and Ms. FLOREZ PRIDA (Cuba) made statements.
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| FOURTH REVIEW CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE CONVENTION ON THE PROHIBITION OF THE DEVELOPMENT, PRODUCTION AND STOCKPILING OF BACTERIOLOGICAL (BIOLOGICAL) AND TOXIN WEAPONS AND ON THEIR DESTRUCTION |
Distr. GENERAL
BWC/CONF.IV/SR.4 Original: ENGLISH |
|
Geneva, 25 November - 6 December 1996
President: Sir Michael WESTON (United Kingdom)
CONTENTS
REVIEW OF THE OPERATION OF THE CONVENTION AS PROVIDED FOR IN ITS
ARTICLE XII (continued)
(a) GENERAL DEBATE (continued)
* In accordance with rule 42 of the rules of procedure of the
Conference, no summary records were prepared for meetings, or
parts of meetings, devoted to consideration of agenda item 10
(a) - General debate.
This record is subject to correction.
Corrections should be submitted in one of the working languages.
They should be set forth in a memorandum and also incorporated
in a copy of the record. They should be sent within one week
of the date of this document to the Official Records Editing
Section, room E.4018, Palais des Nations, Geneva.
Any corrections to the records of the meetings of this Conference
will be consolidated in a single corrigendum, to be issued shortly
after the end of the Conference.
REVIEW OF THE OPERATION OF THE CONVENTION AS PROVIDED FOR IN ITS
ARTICLE XII (agenda item 10) (continued)
(a) GENERAL DEBATE (continued)
Statements were made by Ms. BOKOVA (Bulgaria), Mr. SUN
(Republic of Korea), Mr. DE ICAZA (Mexico), Mr. CAMPBELL
(Australia), Mr. BERDENNIKOV (Russian Federation), Ms.
KRASNOHORSKA (Slovak Republic), Mr. RYTIK (Belarus),
Mr. BERGUNO (Chile), Mr. TARMIDZI (Indonesia), Mr.
ABBAS (Iraq), Mr. HASHIM (Bangladesh), Mr. NASERI
(Islamic Republic of Iran) and Mr. GHOSE (India).
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| FOURTH REVIEW CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE CONVENTION ON THE PROHIBITION OF THE DEVELOPMENT, PRODUCTION AND STOCKPILING OF BACTERIOLOGICAL (BIOLOGICAL) AND TOXIN WEAPONS AND ON THEIR DESTRUCTION |
Distr. GENERAL
BWC/CONF.IV/SR.5 Original: ENGLISH |
|
Geneva, 25 November - 6 December 1996
REVIEW OF THE OPERATION OF THE CONVENTION AS PROVIDED FOR IN ITS
ARTICLE XII (continued)
(a) GENERAL DEBATE (continued)
REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE
* In accordance with rule 42 of the rules of procedure of the
Conference, no summary records were prepared for meetings, or
parts of meetings, devoted to consideration of agenda item 10
(a) - General debate.
This record is subject to correction.
Corrections should be submitted in one of the working languages.
They should be set forth in a memorandum and also incorporated
in a copy of the record. They should be sent within one week
of the date of this document to the Official Records Editing
Section, room E.4108, Palais des Nations, Geneva.
Any corrections to the records of the meetings of this Conference
will be consolidated in a single corrigendum, to be issued shortly
after the end of the Conference.
REVIEW OF THE OPERATION OF THE CONVENTION AS PROVIDED FOR IN ITS
ARTICLE XII (agenda item 10) (continued)
(a) GENERAL DEBATE (continued)
1. Statements were made by Mr. ZAHRAN (Egypt) and Mr.
MERNIER (Belgium).
REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE (agenda item 14) (BWC/CONF.IV/COW/CRP.1)
2. Mr. BERGUÑO (Chile), Chairman of the Committee
of the Whole, introducing the Committee's report (BWC/CONF.IV/COW/CRP.1),
recalled that, in accordance with rule 35 of its rules of procedure,
the Conference had decided as was customary, to establish a Committee
of the Whole to undertake the review of the various articles and
provisions of the Convention under agenda items 10 (a),
10 (b), 11, 12 and 13.
3. At its 1st meeting, the Committee had decided to cluster articles
in the following manner: articles I-II; articles III-IV; article
V; articles VI-IX; article X; and articles XI-XV, including
the preamble. The Committee had also examined agenda items 11,
12 and 13.
4. The Committee had held five meetings and a series of informal
consultations. A number of proposals had been presented on the
various articles of the Convention and were contained in annex II
of the Committee's report. The Chairman's summary of the various
views expressed during the deliberations of the Committee was
contained in annex I.
5. The PRESIDENT congratulated Mr. Berguño on the
able manner in which he had conducted the deliberations of the
Committee of the Whole. If he heard no objection, he would take
it that the Conference wished to take note of the report of the
Committee of the Whole and its annexes, on the understanding that
the latter were without prejudice to the views of delegations.
6. It was so decided.
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| FOURTH REVIEW CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE CONVENTION ON THE PROHIBITION OF THE DEVELOPMENT, PRODUCTION AND STOCKPILING OF BACTERIOLOGICAL (BIOLOGICAL) AND TOXIN WEAPONS AND ON THEIR DESTRUCTION |
Distr. GENERAL
BWC/CONF.IV/SR.6
ENGLISH |
|
Geneva, 25 November - 6 December 1996
CREDENTIALS OF REPRESENTATIVES TO THE CONFERENCE (continued)
(b) REPORT OF THE CREDENTIALS COMMITTEE
REPORT OF THE DRAFTING COMMITTEE
PREPARATION AND ADOPTION OF THE FINAL DOCUMENT(S)
CLOSING STATEMENTS
CLOSURE OF THE CONFERENCE
This record is subject to correction.
Corrections should be submitted in one of the working languages.
They should be set forth in a memorandum and also incorporated
in a copy of the record. They should be sent within one week
of the date of this document to the Official Records Editing
Section, room E.4108, Palais des Nations, Geneva.
Any corrections to the records of the meetings of this Conference
will be consolidated in a single corrigendum, to be issued shortly
after the end of the Conference.
CREDENTIALS OF REPRESENTATIVES TO THE CONFERENCE (agenda item
7) (continued)
(b) REPORT OF THE CREDENTIALS COMMITTEE (BWC/CONF.IV/CC/1)
1. Mrs. ARIAS CASTAÑO (Colombia), Chairman of the
Credentials Committee, introducing the Committee's report (BWC/CONF.IV/CC/1),
said that the Committee had held two meetings during the Conference
to examine the credentials of the 79 States parties participating
in the work of the Conference. Forty-six of those States had submitted
their credentials in due form, 19 had submitted provisional credentials
and 14 had communicated lists of representatives in letters from
their respective Permanent Missions or Ministries of Foreign Affairs.
The Islamic Republic of Iran, Nigeria and Senegal should be added
to the list of States parties having submitted provisional credentials.
As the delegations of Turkmenistan and Zimbabwe had not participated
in the work of the Conference, those two countries had been deleted
from the list of participants. The Committee had received notification
from Uganda of the composition of its delegation, and that State
should consequently be added to the list of participants.
2. The Committee had decided to accept the credentials of the
representatives of the States parties, on the understanding that
those that had not yet communicated the official credentials of
their representatives as required by rule 2 of the rules of procedure
would submit them to the Secretary-General of the Conference as
soon as possible.
3. The Credentials Committee recommended to the Conference the
adoption of the draft resolution entitled "Report of the
Credentials Committee to the Fourth Review Conference of the Parties
to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production
and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons
and on their Destruction", which appeared in paragraph 9
of the Committee's report (BWC/CONF.IV/CC/1).
4. Mr. HASHIM (Bangladesh) said that the official credentials
of his delegation should reach the secretariat of the Conference
at any moment, and requested that, in the Final Document of the
Conference, the name of his country should appear in the list
of States parties having submitted credentials in due form.
5. The PRESIDENT said he had no objection to that proposal
as long as the official credentials of the delegation of Bangladesh
reached the secretariat before the end of the meeting. If there
were no objection, he would take it that the participants wished
to take note of the report of the Credentials Committee.
6. It was so decided.
REPORT OF THE DRAFTING COMMITTEE (agenda item 15) (BWC/CONF.IV/DC/L.1
and BWC/CONF.IV/L.1 and Add.1)
7. Mr. TOTH (Hungary), Chairman of the Drafting Committee,
introducing the draft report of the Committee (BWC/CONF.IV/DC/L.1),
to which were appended the draft final document of the Conference
(BWC/CONF.IV/L.1) and the draft final declaration (BWC/CONF.IV/L.1/Add.1),
said that the Drafting Committee had held 11 formal meetings and
several informal meetings. He thanked all delegations for the
flexibility they had shown throughout the work of the Committee.
He also paid tribute to the secretariat of the Committee, the
interpreters, the translators and the technicians who had worked
without interruption so that the Committee could fulfil its mandate
within the given time limits. He also thanked the President of
the Conference for his invaluable contribution.
8. The PRESIDENT said that, if he heard no objection, he
would take it that the Conference wished to take note of the report
of the Drafting Committee.
9. It was so decided.
PREPARATION AND ADOPTION OF THE FINAL DOCUMENT(S) (BWC/CONF.IV/L.1
and Add.1)
10. The PRESIDENT said that the Conference had before it
the draft final document of the Fourth Review Conference, consisting
of four parts and four annexes: I. Organization and work of the
Conference; II. Final Declaration, as orally revised; III. Report
of the Committee of the Whole; IV. Summary records of plenary
meetings; and Annex I. List of documents of the Conference; Annex
II. Report of the Preparatory Committee; Annex III. Rules of procedure
of the Conference; and Annex IV. List of participants at the Conference.
If he heard no objections, he would take it that the Conference
wished to adopt the draft final document.
11. It was so decided.
CLOSING STATEMENTS
12. Mrs. GHOSE (India) said that, prior to the closure
of the Conference, she wished to raise several issues for participants
to consider. In order to limit expenses, the Conference had perhaps
slightly underestimated the time necessary to complete its work,
and it was thanks to the remarkable efforts of the President that
the positive results obtained had been possible. It was none the
less in order to ask whether it had completely fulfilled its mandate,
which was to review the application of the Convention by States
Parties.
13. Another question calling for reflection was that of the use
of the words "proliferation" and "non-proliferation".
The manner in which they were used suggested that only certain
States were obliged to dispose of their stockpiles of weapons,
while others were entitled to possess them. As long as that notion
prevailed, India would continue to have the most serious reservations.
14. She wished to say a few words about the discussions that had taken place within the Drafting Committee, and above all behind the scenes, on the use of the word "multilateral", which was particularly important in the context of article 3 of the Convention. For India and for the non-aligned States, "multilateral" meant "universal". However, it had emerged during the course of the debates that, in the minds of some States parties, the term applied to a limited and exclusive group of States. That was an important question to
which the delegations of member States of the Group of Non-Aligned
and Other States would certainly return within the framework of
the future work of the Conference.
15. Mrs. ARIAS CASTAÑO (Colombia), speaking on behalf
of the Group of Non-Aligned and Other States, said that the results
achieved had been extremely positive, as was evident from the
Final Declaration. They would serve as guiding principles for
the future work of the Conference. It was to be hoped that all
delegations would continue to display the same spirit of cooperation.
16. Mr. CAMPBELL (Australia), speaking on behalf of a group
of Western States Parties said that he welcomed the success of
the Conference, which had been possible only thanks to the flexibility
and sense of compromise shown by all delegations. He hoped that
that spirit would continue to prevail.
17. Mr. BERDENNIKOV (Russian Federation), speaking on behalf
of the Group of East European States, paid tribute to the President
of the Conference, whose tireless efforts had made possible the
extremely positive results obtained. He also expressed his gratitude
to the Chairmen of the Committee of the Whole, the Drafting Committee
and the Credentials Committee, as well as to all members of the
secretariat, who had spared no effort to make the Conference a
complete success.
18. Mr. KREISHAN (Jordan) said that his country had suffered
throughout its history from the horrors of war and appreciated
the real value of peace and security. Jordan had signed all the
international conventions aimed at promoting peace throughout
the world, and at the regional level, it had concluded an agreement
with Israel, putting an end to long decades of conflict.
19. Jordan had never acquired any capability to produce biological
weapons and had never used such weapons. It supported all efforts
to promote the application of the Convention, including confidence-building
measures, and subscribed to initiatives aimed at setting up a
verification system and a body capable of implementing the means
used to that end.
20. Unfortunately, certain neighbouring States had not signed
the Convention. Although Jordan maintained good neighbourly relations
with them, the situation continued to be of concern, as Jordan
saw in it a potential threat to its security and stability.
21. The international community should simultaneously and with
the same vigour eliminate all weapons of mass destruction, whether
biological, chemical or nuclear, and appeal to all States possessing
such weapons to ratify the relevant international conventions.
Jordan was convinced in that regard that any progress towards
the prohibition of nuclear weapons would encourage numerous States
to accede to the conventions on the prohibition of biological
and chemical weapons.
22. Mr. BERGUÑO BARNES (Chile) said that annex II
to the report of the Committee of the Whole (see document BWC/CONF.IV/L.l)
had inadvertently omitted to mention a document submitted by Colombia.
The secretariat would be requested to do what was needed to ensure
that the omission was rectified.
23. One of the positive elements worth mentioning was the very
large number of States parties, signatory States, United Nations
bodies and non-governmental organizations that had participated
not only in the Conference itself but also in the preparatory
process, which augured well for future work.
CLOSURE OF THE CONFERENCE
24. The PRESIDENT thanked all the participants, whose cooperation
had made it possible to complete the work of the Conference even
earlier than expected. Nevertheless, like the representative of
India he wondered whether the fact that the length of the Conference
had been reduced from three weeks to two had not forced participants
to spend too much time on drafting documents and not enough on
the very purpose of the Conference, which was to review the application
of the Convention by States parties.
25. Having paid special tribute to the Chairman of the Drafting
Committee, the Chairman of the Credentials Committee, the Secretary-General
and the Bureau of the Conference and to all the members of the
secretariat, he declared the Fourth Review Conference of the Parties
to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production
and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons
and on their Destruction closed.
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