THE HAGUE, May 23, 2018 (WAFA) - The State of Palestine deposited on May 17 its instrument of accession to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) with the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the depositary of the Convention, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said in a statement on Wednesday.

The Convention will enter into force for the State of Palestine on 16 June 2018, making it number 193 State Party.

Omar Awadallah, in charge of the United Nations file at the Foreign Ministry, said President Mahmoud Abbas has signed the accession papers to the CWC, along with Palestine‘s accession to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) on May 14.

He said the accession of Palestine to international conventions and organizations aims at “strengthening the status of the State of Palestine” and “to engage and work with the international community, especially on important issues such as the spread of chemical weapons due to their threat to peace.”

As the implementing body for the CWC, the OPCW oversees the global endeavor to permanently and verifiably eliminate chemical weapons.

M.K.