Der er så vidt vides ikke blevet brugt kemiske våben siden 1988. Mandag begynder en konference, hvor den international konvention mod kemiske våben skal kigges efter.
I anledning af konferencen har DIIS-forskeren Cindy Vestergaard, udgivet en artikel om emnet. I foromtalen skriver DIIS fredag:
A century after the first (and massive) use of chemical weapons (CW), the world is finally enjoying its longest absence from state-to-state chemical warfare.
No state has used chemical weapons against another state since the last recorded attacks by Iraq in 1988.
Chemical weapons however cannot yet be considered armaments of the past.
Recent declarations of potential chemical weapons use by Syria against any incoming foreign forces coupled with revelations of larger-than-initially-declared chemical weapons stockpiles in Libya are a reminder of the fragility underlying the current chemical peace.
Meanwhile, tear gas is used to disperse protesters from Tripoli to Thailand and California to Cairo – raising questions about when a tool for law enforcement crosses the line to become a method of warfare.
Moreover, the Eurozone and global economic and financial crises roll on, focusing world attention on the enduring fiscal crunch.
Within these changing times, the implementing body of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), is moving into a period of transition where it can gradually shift from aspiring towards a world free of chemical weapons, to actually establishing and maintaining such a world
At the same time, the non-proliferation and disarmament policy of the EU is entering its tenth year.
As Member States of the CWC meet in the Hague next week for the CWC’s Third Review Conference, Cindy Vestergaard’s article “Maintaining chemical peace: the CWC, the European Union, and political developments” looks at the opportunity the OPCW’s transitory phase presents for examining the future role and function of the OPCW.
It also examines how political developments, evolving treaties and a changing security environment require an update of the EU’s common non-proliferation approach.
