The Eighth Review Conference: Processoverview

EU Regional Workshop on Preparations for theEighth BWC Review ConferenceAddis Ababa, Ethiopia, 13-14 September 2016

Alex LampalzerPolitical Affairs OfficerBWC Implementation Support UnitUnited Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs(Geneva Branch)

Overview

• BWC in a nutshell

• Mandate of the Review Conference

• History of past Review Conferences

• Procedural and administrative issues

• 2016 Preparatory Process

• BWC Sponsorship Programme

Biological Weapons Convention

175 States Parties

8 Signatories

13 States not party

• opened for signature on 10April 1972

• EiF on 26 March 1975• First multilateral

disarmament treatybanning an entire categoryof Weapons of MassDestruction

• Non-discriminatory innature

• Unlimited duration• Open to any state

Role of the RevCon

“Five years after the entry into force of thisConvention … a conference of States Parties to theConvention shall be held at Geneva, Switzerland, toreview the operation of the Convention, with aview to assuring that the purposes of the preambleand the provisions of the Convention… are beingrealized. Such review shall take into account anynew scientific and technological developmentsrelevant to the Convention.”

BWC Article XII

RevCon frequency

• BWC – “Five years after the entry into force of thisConvention … a conference of States Parties to theConvention shall be held …”

• RC1 – “not earlier than 1985 … not later than 1990”

• RC2, 3, 4 and 5 – “not later than …”

• RC6 – “recommends that Review Conferencesshould continue to be held at least every fiveyears.”

• RC7 – “decides that Review Conferences be held atleast every five years.”

Eighth Review Conference“The Conference decides that the Eighth Review Conference shall beheld in Geneva not later than 2016 and should review the operationof the Convention, taking into account, inter alia:a) new scientific and technological developments relevant to the

Convention, taking into account the relevant decision of thisConference regarding the review of developments in the field ofscience and technology related to the Convention;

b) the progress made by States Parties on the implementation ofthe Convention;

c) progress of the implementation of decisions andrecommendations agreed upon at the Seventh ReviewConference, taking into account, as appropriate, decisions andrecommendations reached at previous review conferences.”

BWC/CONF.VII/7, para 66, p. 18

Previous Review Conferences

87

102

118

132

146155

165175

40

58

69 65 6878

93

114

5363

78 77

94103 103

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

200

RC11980

RC21986

RC31991

RC41996

RC52001/02

RC62006

RC72011

RC82016

SPs

Participating SPs PrepCom

Participating SPs RevCon

Review Conference presidents

RC President State Party Reg. Group

1 Oscar Vaerno Norway Western

2 Winfried Lang Austria NAM

3 Roberto Moritan Argentina NAM*

4 Michael Weston UK Western

5 Tibor Toth Hungary Eastern

6 Masood Khan Pakistan NAM

7 Paul van den IJssel Netherlands Western

8 György Molnár Hungary Eastern

* In 1991, the Eastern European Group ceded the Presidency of the ThirdRevCon to the NAM

Procedural and admin issues

• Duration – generally of three weeks duration• Timing – usually at the end of the year• Budget – until 2011, funded by States participating,

now funded by all States Parties• Preparatory Committee – usually a few days on

procedural matters in the Spring (until 2016)• Bureau – Chairman and two Vice-Chairs elected by

PrepCom, authorized to handle “technical and othermatters in the period before the Review Conference”

• Venue – All meetings take place in the United NationsOffice at Geneva

• Rules of procedure – unchanged for many years

Financing the RevCon

• MSP 2015 also approved cost estimates for theBWC meetings this year contained inBWC/MSP/2015/5*

• Costs are shared by all States Parties:• April PrepCom – $170,000• August PrepCom - $218,700• RevCon – $816,700• ISU – $760,700

• Total cost in 2016 of $1,966,700

• Over 100 States Parties pay less than $1,000 peryear and 52 pay less than $100

Financing the RevCon

Algeria Angola BurundiCamero

onCote

d'IvoireDjibouti Guinea Kenya Lesotho

Madagascar

Malawi SomaliaSouthAfrica

Sudan Togo Uganda ZambiaZimbab

we

ProratedPercentage

0.162 0 0.001 0.01 0 0 0 0.18 0.001 0.003 0.002 0 0.366 0.01 0.001 0.009 0.007 0.002

AssessedContributions (US$)

3188 0 19 198 0 0 0 357 19 60 39 0 7,207 198 19 178 139 80

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

US$

SCALE OF ASSESSMENTS FOR BWC IN 2016

Outcome of the RevCon

• Every Review Conference except 2001 has resultedin a final document reviewing the operation of theBWC

• Since 2006, final documents have also included a“decisions and recommendations” section

• Three-part final document:• Part I – organization of the Review Conference• Part II – final declaration• Part III – decisions and recommendations

• Part II is retrospective article-by-article review, PartIII is future-oriented roadmap for next five years

2016 preparatory process

Report of the 2015 MSP

General Assembly resolution 70/74

2016 PrepCom Process

April PrepCom

• Organizational aspects

• General exchange of views

• 1.5 days

August PrepCom

• Remaining procedural matters

• Continuation of the GeneralExchange of Views

• Comprehensive consideration ofall Convention provisions

• Cross cutting issues (SnT, possiblefuture ISP, ISU)

• 4.5 days

Preparatory Committee Agenda BWC/CONF.VIII/PC/1

• Election of office-holders:– Chairman - György Molnár (Hungary) EEG

– Vice-Chairman - Michael Biontino (Germany) WG

– Vice-Chairman - Boudjemâa Delmi (Algeria) NAM

• General exchange of views:– 27 States Parties

– 8 States Parties presented specific proposals

• Decision on background papers from ISU

• Endorsed dates (7-25 Nov), duration and financialarrangements already agreed by MSP2015

April 2016 PrepCom

BWC PrepCom2016 - György Molnár (EEG)

2011 – Paul van den IJssel (WG)

2006 – Masood Khan (NAM)

CHAIRMAN

2016 – Michael Biontino (WG)

2011 – Desra Percaya (NAM)

2006 – Doru Costea (EEG)

VICE-CHAIRMAN

2016 – Boudjemâa Delmi (NAM)

2011 – Judit Körömi (EEG)

2006 – Knut Langeland (WG)

VICE-CHAIRMAN

Background documents (by ISU)• The ISU has prepared five background documents on:

1. BWC/CONF.VIII/PC/3: History and operation of theconfidence building measures

2. BWC/CONF.VIII/PC/6: Financial implications of proposals forfollow-on action after the Eighth Review Conference

3. BWC/CONF.VIII/PC/4: Additional understandings andagreements reached by previous Review Conferences relatingto each article of the Convention

4. BWC/CONF.VIII/PC/5: Common understandings reached bythe MSPs during the intersessional programme 2012-15

5. BWC/CONF.VIII/PC/8: Status of universalization of theConvention

BWC/CONF.VIII/PC7 Report of the ISU on its activities toimplement its mandate, 2012-2016

Background documents (by SPs)

• The PrepCom decided that the ISU would compile,from national inputs, three background documentson:

1. Compliance by States Parties with all theirobligations under the Convention

2. Implementation of Article VII

3. Implementation of Article X

• The ISU wrote to States Parties on 23 Mayrequesting inputs to be submitted by 19 August2016

• Organization of RevCon - Agreement to recommend to theRevCon– Draft provisional agenda for RevCon

– Draft Rules of Procedure

– Composition of the General Committee

– Certain meetings be held in public

– Publicity - issuance of press releases

– Prov. Secretary-General

– Final document

• General Exchange of views:– 41 States Parties, Iran on behalf of NAM, statements by EU, ICRC

• Comprehensive consideration of the BWC– 30 States Parties took the floor

August 2016 PrepCom

BWC Review Conference

2016 – György Molnár (EEG)

2011 – Paul van den IJssel (WG)

2006 – Masood Khan (NAM)

PRESIDENT

2016 – Boudjemâa Delmi(NAM)

2011 – Judit Körömi (EEG)

2006 – Knut Langeland (WG)

DRAFTING COMMITTEE

2016 – Michael Biontino (WG)

2011 – Desra Percaya (NAM)

2006 – Doru Costea (EEG)

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

2016 – Tudor Ulianovschi (EEG)

2011 – Mário Duarte (WG)

2006 – Philip R Owade (NAM)

CREDENTIALS COMMITTEE

General Committee

PRESIDENT

EEG (X4)

NAM (X10)

WG (X6)VICE-PRESIDENTS

CHAIR & 2 VICE-CHAIRS

DRAFTING COMM.

CHAIR & 2 VICE-CHAIRS

CoW

CHAIR & 1 VICE-CHAIR

CREDENTIALS COMM.

EEG

NAM

WGREGIONAL COORDS.

RUSSIA

UK

USA

DEPOSITARIES

BWC Sponsorship programme

• To enable participation in BWC meetings in Geneva

• Supported by voluntary contributions

• Aimed at developing States Parties, who have notpreviously/regularly attended BWC meetings

• Also available for States not party to the BWC

• Covers cost of flights to and from Geneva and DSA forattendance at BWC meetings

• Deadline for applications for 2016 PrepCom and ReviewConference was 30 May 2016

• Application form and selection criteria on BWC website

• www.unog.ch/bwc/sponsorship

BWC Sponsorship Programme• 34 participants from 25 SPs

(incl. Burkina Faso,Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya,Malawi, Malawi, Sudan,Togo, Uganda, Zambia,Zimbabwe)

• 5 States Parties and EUsponsored programme

• Participation in 1 weekPrepCom, 1 week RevCon

• Eligibility• Nomination

2016 PrepCom

• Record participation– 114 States Parties

– 2 State Signatories

– 3 States not party to the BWC

– UNODA, UNICRI

– EU, ICRC

– 22 NGOs and research institutes

• 39 Working Papers

• All necessary procedural decisions

• Comprehensive exchange and interactive discussionsamong SPs

• BWC/CONF.VIII/PC/2: Final Report of the PrepComChairman’s Summary Report under his own authority

www.unog.ch/bwc/meeting

For more information …

www.unog.ch/bwc

Or contact:

BWC Implementation Support UnitUnited Nations Office for Disarmament AffairsPalais des NationsGenevafax: +41 (0)22 917 0483e-mail: bwc@unog.ch@BWCISUwww.facebook.com/1972BWC