Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) - On 3-6 December 2019, a delegation of Uzbekistan headed by the acting Chairman of the State Industrial Safety Committee Bakhtiyor Gulyamov, took part in the next Meeting of the States Parties to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction (BWC), which took place at the UN Nations Palace in Geneva .

According to the Permanent Mission of our country in Geneva, the BWC was approved by the UN General Assembly in 1971 and entered into force in 1975. Uzbekistan joined the document in January 1996.

Delegations from 126 countries, over 40 international organizations and research centers discussed the results of the work of the subsidiary bodies of the Convention on cooperation and assistance in the implementation of its articles, the institutional strengthening of this international document, and reviewed achievements in the field of science and technology.

The agenda also included items on preparations for the ninth review conference and meetings of its Preparatory Committee in 2021, budgetary and financial issues, as well as measures aimed at universalizing the Convention.

During the event, the head of the Uzbek delegation presented detailed information on the reforms being carried out in our country aimed at reducing the chemical, biological and bacteriological risks of an emergency or natural origin. It was noted that in recent years significant progress has been achieved in these matters by improving national legislation, establishing mutually beneficial cooperation with international partners, introducing best practices and skills to effectively respond to possible challenges.

On the sidelines of the meeting, the Uzbek side together with the European Union, the Biosafety Association for Central Asia and the Caucasus, the international center for science and technology held a round table on the theme “Strengthening the implementation of the BWC with the participation of civil society”. The participants were familiarized with the successful experience of the activities of the Secretariat of the EU Center for Excellence in Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Risks (CBRN) for Central Asia created in Tashkent.

In the course of separate bilateral meetings with the delegations of Russia, Kazakhstan, Germany and other countries, topical issues of bilateral cooperation were discussed, including in the field of technical assistance, as well as on mapping hazardous waste burial sites in border regions.

Following the talks, the German side expressed its readiness to supply modern portable chemical laboratories to Uzbekistan, as well as to train specialists to work on this equipment.