Ahmet Üzümcü, the director-general of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), has pointed to Turkey's importance for the work of the OPCW and its regional links and industry affiliations that help to extend the reach of global disarmament efforts. In relation to claims about the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham's (ISIS) use of chemical weapons, he said that the OPCW is "deeply concerned" about allegations of the use of toxic chemicals as weapons by terrorist groups. He underlined that the OPCW tries to be well prepared to engage as swiftly as it did in its Syria mission.As the OPCW's disarmament efforts in Syria come to an end, the Executive Council of the OPCW met in the Hague recently to express its serious concern regarding the findings of its fact-finding mission that showed that chlorine had been used as a weapon in three villages in northern Syria from April to August 2014. As arguments in relation to Syria's disarmament after it signed the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in September 2013 continue, Daily Sabah spoke with Üzümcü about recent developments in Syria and claims that ISIS has gained access to chemical weapons and is using them.Daily Sabah: The OPCW implemented a global ban against chemical weapons, and today we see evidence of its work around the world. A prominent example is Syria where the OPCW has overseen an international effort to destroy that country's chemical weapons program. When you take a look back over this process, how do you see the work that has been done and what the OPCW has achieved so far?Ahmet Üzümcü: The international mission to eliminate Syria's chemical weapons program has, by any measure, been an extraordinary success. In less than a year after the OPCW Executive Council's historic decision in September 2013 on a destruction program, we were able to remove all declared weapons from Syrian territory and destroy 98 percent of them, including all stocks of the most dangerous chemicals.This could not have been achieved without the unprecedented international effort that saw technical and financial contributions from more than 35 countries, as well as vital security and logistical support from the United Nations. For example, the United States provided a sea-based platform for destroying sulfur mustard and a precursor chemical for manufacturing sarin, a deadly nerve agent. Several countries opened up their facilities for destroying other toxic chemicals – notably, Finland, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. All destruction activities have been carried out under the verification of OPCW experts.It should also be remembered that OPCW inspectors played a key role in the UN investigation of alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria before Syria joined the Chemical Weapons Convention. That investigation confirmed that sarin had been used in the August 2013 attacks in the Damascus suburb of Ghouta.DS: The OPCW's motto is "Working together for a world free of chemical weapons." How do you evaluate the international community's cooperation with the OPCW? Is there any new initiative on the agenda of the international community with regard to the prohibition of chemical weapons?AÜ: International cooperation on the Syria mission has shown the strength of global consensus against chemical weapons. This consensus is the bedrock of everything that we do. With 190 member states, the OPCW essentially represents a collective international endeavor. Our goal is to ensure the full universality of the convention as early as possible. We continue to encourage the remaining six countries – Angola, Egypt, Israel, Myanmar, North Korea and South Sudan – to join the convention without delay and without any conditions. To this end, we welcome Myanmar's recent progress in ratifying the convention. Our members entrust the Technical Secretariat of the OPCW with verification and inspection activities, whether in relation to the destruction of chemical weapons by their possessor states or routine inspections of industrial facilities to certify that their production is exclusively for peaceful purposes. That said, we rely on our members to provide assistance to support all manner of other core activities. These include training in protective measures against exposure to chemical agents, hosting regional seminars on chemical safety and security and having their industry host associates from developing countries.Implementing the convention is very much an international collaborative venture that engages individual governments as well as their science and industry sectors and, increasingly, universities and civil society.DS: How do you evaluate Turkey's contribution to combatting chemical weapons?AÜ: Turkey is a member of the Chemical Weapons Convention in good standing and contributes actively to our programs and training activities. Its regional links and industry affiliations provide a firm platform for extending the reach of global chemical disarmament efforts.DS: Does the OPCW have observations or map areas of risk for the potential production and use of chemical weapons?AÜ: The OPCW is focused on ensuring sound implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention by all of its member states, including its newest members, and guarding against instances of non-compliance wherever they may occur. As part of this, we undertake contingency planning as a matter of course. It was on this basis that we were well prepared to engage as swiftly as we did for the mission in Syria. I should also add that we have a mechanism of challenge inspections that enables the organization to verify credible allegations of non-compliance that may be raised by any state party.DS: In recent years, has the OPCW identified new kinds of chemical weapons that might challenge those defined in the Chemical Weapons Convention?AÜ: We closely monitor advances in science and technology that could impact the implementation of the convention. In fact, a separate Scientific Advisory Board made up of international, independent experts is tasked to do just that, reporting directly to me with recommendations on a wide range of issues such as the convergence of chemistry and biology. We also watch how engineering technology develops and what impact this could have on production techniques. This helps frame our industry inspection activities and fine tunes our verification methods.It is important to remember, however, that the convention has a broad-ranging understanding of what constitutes a chemical weapon, which goes beyond well-known nerve and choking agents. Any chemical used as a weapon is regarded as a chemical weapon under the Convention. Chlorine, for example, is a vital chemical for municipal water purification, but it can also be used to kill, as it has been in Syria. As you can see, chemical weapons need not be sophisticated – it is their application as much as their composition that defines them.DS: The situation in Syria probably has become increasingly complicated with terrorist groups like ISIS exploiting the conflict between the regime and opposition groups for their own purposes. Graphic images and eyewitness accounts have led to claims that ISIS has gained access to chemical weapons and is using them. Does the OPCW have information about what sort of weapons ISIS might have and what can be done to stop them from using them?AÜ: The OPCW does not have an independent information-gathering capacity, nor does it have the mandate to undertake this sort of activity. It relies on declarations and other information provided by its member states.We are, of course, deeply concerned about allegations of the use of toxic chemicals as weapons by terrorist groups. Current global non-proliferation norms are ill equipped to address the threat of non-state actors acquiring chemical weapons and other weapons of mass destruction since they were largely negotiated with states in mind. While we are not an anti-terrorist organization, the OPCW is actively exploring ways of extending its reach, including through improved emergency response mechanisms with other agencies under U.N. auspices.DS: Please correct me if I am mistaken, but as far as I understand, an official request from a state party is needed for the OPCW to act in instances of the use of chemical weapons. Has the Iraqi government made such a request to the OPCW?AÜ: Iraq has kept the Executive Council of the OPCW briefed on the situation within its borders. No request for assistance has been made by Iraq as to any allegations of chemical weapons use on its territory.DS: According to Reuters, Syria has now started the long-delayed destruction of a dozen underground bunkers and hangars that were once used for the production and storage of chemical weapons. How much chemical weaponry is left in Syria? When do you expect the total amount to be destroyed? And what does the OPCW do to speed up the process?AÜ: All of the chemical weapons declared by Syria – some 1,308 metric tons – have been removed from Syrian territory and largely destroyed, of which stocks of isopropanol were destroyed in-country. Only 29 tons of hydrogen fluoride – little more than 2 percent of the total amount of chemical weapons declared by Syria – remain to be destroyed at facilities in the United Kingdom and United States. As I mentioned, this was achieved in a remarkably short time frame.What is now being destroyed in Syria are 12 structures that hosted chemical weapon production facilities in the past. The OPCW has so far verified the destruction of one of these facilities and destruction activities and preparatory work is well underway at the remaining 11 structures. Syria's ability to produce chemical weapons was, in fact, neutralized some time ago – before November 1, 2013, when all relevant equipment at production facilities was verified as destroyed.Who is Ahmet Üzümcü? Ahmet Üzümcü was appointed director-general of the OPCW in December 2009 by the 14th Session of the Conference of the State Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention and began his first term of office on July 25, 2010. He was reappointed for a second term at the 18th Session of the Conference of State Parties in December 2013. Üzümcü received the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of the OPCW in December 2013. In January 2014, he was awarded the Medaglia d'Onore and the Sigillum Magnum by the University of Bologna in Italy.Üzümcü is a career diplomat with vast experience in multilateral diplomacy. During the past decade he has represented Turkey at the NATO Council, the Conference on Disarmament, the UN and other international organizations in Geneva. From June 2002 to August 2004, he was the permanent representative of Turkey to the NATO Council in Brussels. He held the post of ambassador of Turkey to Israel from 1999 to 2002.