Havana, Cuba.-Cuba will mark the two decades of the Chemical Weapons Convention with a Day for the Protection against these devices, and a commemorative event for the 20th anniversary of that international agreement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today.

These activities will include meetings and seminars to be held during this year.

They will be organized by the national authority for the implementation of the Convention, in coordination with other institutions of the country.

The Caribbean nation was one of the signatories to this instrument, which ratified upon its entry into force on April 29th, 1997, and is committed to its full, effective and non-discriminatory application.

The Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction (Chemical Weapons Convention) corresponds to the firm and consistent Cuban position in favor of the prohibition and total elimination of the weapons for mass extermination, the text said.

It also underlines the deserved respect and recognition of the international community in the work of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in the verifiable destruction of such devices, national implementation, international cooperation, assistance and protection.

For that reason, the balance of these pillars in the ongoing discussions on the future priorities of the Organization should be ensured, and the full destruction of those arsenals by the possessing states should be boosted, he points out.

It also calls for the elimination of unilateral sanctions and restrictions that, in contravention of the Convention, limit and impede the broader peaceful exchange of substances, materials and equipment in the field of chemistry.