Activities not prohibited

Confidentiality concerns, in particular, in relation to inspections of industry facilities and in relation to activities not prohibited by the Convention have led to several measures aimed at protecting sensitive information. In order to allow the inspected State Party to retain all data produced by the GC/MS, the equipment is operated from a removable hard disk, which may be retained on site at the end of the inspection. Another measure has been the design of dual mode software for the GC/MS by modifying the operating software of the instrument to offer operation in so-called open or blinded mode as explained in the following. 

PART VII Activities not Prohibited Under this Convention in Accordance with Article VI... 

Another key element in regard to national implementation is set out in Article VI which addresses Activities Not Prohibited under this Convention. This starts by setting out the right of States Parties to use toxic chemicals for purposes not prohibited under the Convention. 

Given the above mentioned impact of past developments in chemical technology and industry on military CW production programmes, verifying the permitted uses of toxic chemicals and related facilities had to assume an important role in the overall verification system of the CWC. Activities not prohibited under the CWC are dealt with in Article VI of the Convention and in Parts VI to IX of the CWC s Verification Annex. While the first three of these parts are informed by the subdivision of toxic chemicals into Schedules 1 to 3, Part IX of the Verification Annex deals with other, unlisted, chemicals -so-called discrete organic chemicals or DOCs - and other chemical production facilities (OCPF), which might be easily adaptable to CW production. 

With the opening of the Conference, however, S T issues in general disappeared almost completely from sight, as they were fed into a number of components of the review of the CWC s operation. However, S T issues - more specifically the Report of the SAB as submitted to the Conference by the Director General - resurfaced in the Review Document both in the sections on general verification provisions and on activities not prohibited under the CWC. 

ACTIVITIES NOT PROHIBITED UNDER THIS CONVENTION IN ACCORDANCE WITH ARTICLE VI... 

Operation ofprovisions on activities not prohibited since entry into force of the Convention... 

ACTIVITIES NOT PROHIBITED UNDER THE CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION Cooperation of the chemical industry... 

The First Review Conference reaffirmed that the provisions of the Convention related to activities not prohibited under it shall be implemented in a manner that avoids hampering the economic and technological development of the States Parties and international cooperation in the field of chemical activities not prohibited by the Convention, including the international exchange of information and chemicals and equipment for the production, processing or use of chemicals for purposes not prohibited by the Convention. 

The First Review Conference reaffirmed the importance of national implementation as an essential element of the implementation of the verification and other provisions of Article VI and Parts VI through IX of the Verification Annex. It addressed this issue in detail under agenda item 7(c)(v). The First Review Conference encouraged States Parties to share their experiences about the most effective ways to implement the Convention, and to cooperate in the resolution of issues they may encounter in the implementation of these provisions. The First Review Conference encouraged the Secretariat to continue providing technical assistance to States Parties, by mutual consent, in relation to the identification of declarable facilities, the submission of declarations under Article VI, the receipt of OPCW inspections and other technical questions that may arise in the implementation of the provisions related to activities not prohibited under the Convention. 

The First Review Conference considered scientific and technological developments in regard to activities not prohibited under the Convention, and recognised that the chemical industry is subject to change over time. The OPCW should therefore adapt its verification regime for the chemical industry so as to maintain its effectiveness and relevance, and its consistency with the inspection procedures established by the Convention. 

The verification system is one of the most important elements of the Convention. It provides for systematic verification with continuous on-site monitoring of the destruction of chemical weapons and systematic verification of the elimination of CWPFs. It also provides for the verification of activities not prohibited under the Convention. 

Activities not prohibited under the Chemical Weapons Convention... 

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