Multilateral

Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC or "the Convention"). The OPCW is mandated to achieve the object and purpose of the Convention, to ensure the implementation of its provisions—including the international verification of compliance—and to provide a forum for consultation and cooperation among the States Parties.

The OPCW Technical Secretariat is responsible for the administration and implementation of the Convention, including the conduct of inspections. Meanwhile, the Executive Council and the Conference of the States Parties serve as the decision-making bodies, primarily tasked with setting policy and resolving issues that may arise among States Parties regarding technical matters or the interpretation of the Convention. The chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of the Executive Council and the Conference of the States Parties are appointed based on regional representation. The Technical Secretariat is headed by a Director-General, who is appointed by the Conference upon the recommendation of the Council.

Currently, the OPCW has 188 States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention, representing 98% of the global population and landmass, as well as 98% of the global chemical industry.

More information here

Ecuador in the OPCW

Ecuador signed the "Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction" on January 14, 1993; it ratified the Convention on September 6, 1995, and it entered into force for the country on April 29, 1997.

As a non-possessor state, Ecuador fulfills its commitment to disarmament and world peace. The country’s participation is based on its political-diplomatic representation within the organization’s deliberative bodies and on the ongoing oversight carried out by its designated National Authority—a mechanism tasked with regulating the strictly peaceful use of industrial chemical substances within national territory. At an institutional level, Ecuador held the Chairmanship of the OPCW Executive Council for the 2024–2025 term through its Permanent Representative, Ambassador Andrés Terán Parral, leading the body’s sessions on matters of international security. Key initiatives in which the country remains consistently engaged include the periodic submission of mandatory declarations required by the organization; coordination with the Technical Secretariat on pilot projects focused on technical preparedness and emergency response to chemical agents for first responders; and active participation in practical training cycles and regional cooperation meetings held within Latin America and the Caribbean.