On the occasion of the international Day of Remembrance for All Victims of Chemical Warfare, on 30 November, France reaffirms its resolute commitment to a complete ban on chemical weapons.
The Chemical Weapons Convention is an essential pillar of the international disarmament framework. It brings together 193 States and has allowed declared chemical weapons stockpiles to be totally destroyed.
France reiterates its full support for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and reaffirms its confidence in the Director-General of the Organization and all the members of its technical secretariat, who work professionally and independently every day to combat the proliferation of chemical weapons and the re-emergence of their use.
In 2024 this support has been reflected, in particular, by a voluntary contribution of nearly €1 million towards the Organization's activities linked to Syria and towards support for the Organization in various fields such as training, capacity building in Africa and international cooperation, as well as stepping up dialogue with civil society.
In a context marked by allegations concerning Russia's use of weapons banned by the Convention in its war of aggression against Ukraine, France also pays tribute to the Organization's tireless efforts to shed light on the presence on the battlefield in Ukraine of [chemical] agents banned by the Convention as a method of warfare, as confirmed by the OPCW report published on 18 November 2024.
The use of chemical weapons anywhere, at any time, by anyone and under any circumstances is unacceptable, and those who use them must be subject to sanctions. It is in this spirit that France launched the International Partnership against Impunity for the Use of Chemical Weapons in 2018.