Chair,

Germany aligns itself with the statement of the European Union.

Germany is fully committed to upholding the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) and the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC).

As for chemical weapons, we commend the new Syrian government for the positive example they set by addressing the chemical weapons left behind by the Assad regime and for its close cooperation with the OPCW. In July, due to significant progress achieved, the OPCW’s Executive Council reinstated Syria’s rights and privileges. And notably, in August, the first OPCW-verified destruction of CW from Syria since 2014 was accomplished. Many tasks lie ahead. We call on States Parties to contribute to the OPCW Syria Mission Trust Fund.

By contrast, Germany strongly condemns Russia’s systematic use of riot control agents and the choking agent chloropicrin in its war of aggression against Ukraine. More than 14,000 incidents involving Russia’s use of toxic chemicals have been documented by Ukraine since 2022. These are blatant violations of the CWC and must stop immediately. Holding Russia accountable is crucial to defend the global norm.

Moreover, it is clear that Alexei Navalny was poisoned with a lethal neurotoxin, epibatidine, which highly likely led to his death in a Russian penal colony in 2024. We reiterate our call on Russia to provide full clarification of this case, which constitutes not only a grave violation of the CWC, but also the BTWC.

Chair,

Germany remains fully committed to strengthening the BTWC. Rapid developments in science and technology, in convergence with AI, have lowered the threshold to produce biological weapons. The BTWC is currently ill-equipped to respond adequately. In particular, a mechanism to assess scientific and technological developments, as well as building a verification regime are needed. Germany welcomes the important work of the BTWC Working Group under Brazil’s able stewardship. We call on all States Parties to redouble their efforts to bring these negotiations to a successful conclusion in December this year.

Germany continues to support the operational readiness of the UNSGM under the current guidelines and procedures, which remain fully effective and thus require no further revision, through training measures for experts and laboratories.

Thank you.