Ambassador Rogelio Pfirter, who is the Director-General of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), on Wednesday, praised the international political backing his group has received particularly from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Columbia. Speaking to an audience at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Pfirter said that the group's 188 member states have committed to removing their chemical weapons by 2012. The OCPW has run 1,500 inspections in 80 different countries. While the ambassador showed some hesitation about countries like the United States and Russia meeting the 2012 deadline, he said it is important to focus on the fact that they are moving towards the complete destruction of their stockpiles. The United States and Russia, which are the holders of the world's largest chemical stockpiles, have been working diligently to meet the deadline asked of them. To date, Russia has destroyed 38 percent of its stockpiles, and the United States has destroyed over 60 percent of it's, as well. Touting the “comprehensive” nature of this plan, Pfirter said that at the request of the member nations, the OPCW can send trainers to properly train those so-called “possessor states” on the destruction of their chemical weaponry. The ambassador specifically pointed to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Columbia, which have all requested such training from the OCPW. Pfirter's comments came as the advisor at the Saudi embassy in the Hague, Naif bin Bandar Al-Sudeiry told the fifth meeting for the international initiative for fighting nuclear terrorism, that Saudi Arabia is again pushing for the Middle East to be free from nuclear weapons. Pfirter said that the Middle East has posed the most challenge to the 2012 elimination goals, namely because they have not been as open about disclosing their stockpiles.
