Foreign Vice-minister Rodríguez highlights international cooperation at Conference on Global Biosecurity Challenges in Russia - MPPRE

Foreign Vice-minister Rodríguez highlights international cooperation at Conference on Global Biosecurity Challenges in Russia

At the 3rd International Conference on Global Biosecurity Challenges, Problems and Solutions, which ended on Friday in Sochi, Russian Federation, the Foreign Vice-minister for Multilateral Affairs, Daniela Rodríguez, took part in the panel discussion themed “Priorities for strengthening the BTWC: A Perspective form the Global South.” where she discussed the challenges of international cooperation under Article 10 of the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC).

The diplomat said that Venezuela gives great importance to cooperation as one of the backbones of the BTWC since it is needed to establish an effective mechanism ensuring its full, effective, non-discriminatory implementation.

The representative of the Venezuelan Government also participated in the panel discussion themed “Development of International Cooperation under the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC).”

Rodríguez proposed ways to strengthen the BTWC by identifying priorities in international cooperation, and highlighted that the signatory countries of the Convention are responsible for resuming negotiations on a legally-binding document and all its articles in a balanced comprehensive way, through the establishment of a compliance mechanism.

Likewise, she advocated for the discussion of the proposal made by the Non-Aligned Countries (NAM) on an action plan for the full, effective, non-discriminatory implementation of Article 10, for an Institutional Mechanism of International Cooperation and compliance of the aforementioned article.

The Venezuelan foreign vice-minister for Multilateral Affairs urged the countries to provide assistance and cooperation in areas related to the Convention, condemned the lack of political will of some member countries to fulfill this mission, and considered that “an opening may contribute to the non-discriminatory exchange of scientific, technological knowledge and information.”

“We believe that developed countries have the special responsibility for promoting international cooperation to create capabilities for the benefit of developing countries within the framework of the Convention, and they must eliminate all the restrictions and limitations that oppose the text and spirit of the BTWC,” stressed Rodríguez.

At the 3rd International Conference on Global Biosecurity Challenges, Problems and Solutions, Arline Díaz, Venezuela’s representative to the UN in Geneva, moderated a penal themed “Assistance, response and preparation within the framework of the establishment of anti-pandemic mobile units,” and presents her conclusions at the closing of the event.