Lebanon Signs up to Treaty Banning Chemical Weapons, Becoming 185th Member
Lebanon on Friday signed legal documents which will see it become the 185th signatory to the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention within 30 days.
"The government of Lebanon deposited its instrument of accession to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) with the Secretary-General of the United Nations," the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said in a statement.
"Upon official confirmation of receipt of the instrument by the United Nations, the Convention will enter into force for Lebanon 30 days after the deposit and this country will become the 185th State Party to the CWC," it said.
OPCW Director-General Rogelio Pfirter said the convention”s founding goal of a universal ban on chemical weapons was coming closer.
"We call upon those 10 remaining states that have not yet adhered to the CWC to do so without delay," he said.
Pfirter said in April he had high hopes of Lebanon and Iraq signing up to the treaty in the near future.
Three other states in the Middle East — Israel, Egypt and Syria — have also still to engage, as has North Korea.
Later deadlines for the destruction of stockpiles have been accorded to major producers such as the United States and Russia (2012) or Libya (2011).
The OPCW has conducted over 3,000 inspections in 80 member states since its formation.