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Working Paper by South Africa : Confidence Building Visits (WP.198)

The full text of this Working Paper is provided below; this is from the 8th Session of the Ad Hoc Group of States Parties.  Please note: the page numbers given are those which appear in the original text.

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AD HOC GROUP OF THE STATES PARTIES TO THE CONVENTION ON THE PROHIBITION OF THE DEVELOPMENT, PRODUCTION AND STOCKPILING OF BACTERIOLOGICAL (BIOLOGICAL) AND TOXIN WEAPONS AND ON THEIR DESTRUCTION

BWC/AD HOC GROUP/WP.198
8 September 1997

Original: ENGLISH

Eighth session
Geneva, 15 September - 3 October 1997

Working Paper by South Africa

CONFIDENCE BUILDING VISITS

INTRODUCTION

South Africa during the 5th session of the Ad Hoc Group proposed that a system of voluntary confidence building visits be coordinated by a future BTWC Organization with the aim of promoting confidence between States Parties and to strengthen the Convention. This proposal was reflected in the Friend of the Chair paper on Confidence Building Measures and had been incorporated in the rolling text (BWC/AD HOC GROUP/36) under Annex G, Section VI.

Advantages of such confidence building visits would include:

- Regular contact could help developing confidence among States Parties to the BTWC;
- Such visits might help States Parties to demonstrate transparency in matters related to the BTWC;
- Confidence building visits could be means of establishing open communication channels between similar institutions in different countries and could contribute to create the climate for the interchange of information and technology. As such, these visits could also be a further step towards the implementation of Article X of the Convention;
- The contacts established between international experts could assist with the interchange of information and establish networks of expertise which will be beneficial to all States Parties participating;
- Confidence building visits would not be intrusive.

Drawing from the text in the current Annex G, Section VI, it is proposed that the following text be inserted under Article VIII:  "A CONFIDENCE-BUILDING MEASURES" :

PROPOSAL

CONFIDENCE-BUILDING VISITS

A. PURPOSE

GE.97-64028

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1. The Technical Secretariat of the Organisation shall coordinate a system of voluntary confidence building visits between State Parties with the aim to promote confidence between States Parties.

2. Confidence building visits shall be arranged through bilateral agreements between State Parties or between State Parties and the Organisation

3. A State Party may initiate a confidence building visit to obtain assistance from the Technical Secretariat in specific areas related to the Convention. These areas may include inter alia, fulfilment of declaration obligations, biosafety standards and good laboratory or manufacturing practices.

4. Participation by State Parties in confidence building visits shall be voluntary.

B. INITIATION

5. The Technical Secretariat may request a State Party to conduct a Confidence building visit at a facility on the territory or under the jurisdiction of the State Party.

6. Any State Party may invite the Technical Secretariat and or other State Parties to conduct a confidence building visit at a facility on its territory or under its jurisdiction.

7. The Technical Secretariat or another requesting State Party shall arrange the details of the visit with the visiting State Party(ies) before dispatching the visiting team.

8. The Technical Secretariat shall notify all other State Parties of the visit.

9. The duration of each confidence building visit shall be subject to agreement between participating State Parties and/or the Technical Secretariat.

10. There shall be no more than [2] confidence building visits per annum per participating State Party.

11. Each participating State Party shall, on a voluntary basis, make available to the Technical Secretariat a list of facilities which may be subjected to confidence building visits. These facilities shall include:

(i) Facilities which are to be declared in terms Article III of this Protocol;

(ii) Facilities which are not to be declared in terms of Article III, including commercial, teaching and research facilities.

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12. Each participating State Party may on a voluntary basis include additional facilities in its list of facilities which may be subjected to confidence building visits.

C. PRE-VISIT ACTIVITIES

Visit mandate

13. The Director General shall issue a visit mandate for the visit. The visit mandate shall be compiled with the co-operation of the Visited State Party(ies).

14. The leader of the visiting team will make available the mandate to the Visited State Party upon arrival at the point of entry.

Appointment of the visiting team

15. State Parties participating in confidence building visit system may nominate experts who could be available for participation in non-permanent confidence building visit teams. States Parties may annually update their list of experts.

16. The Director-General shall determine the size of a confidence building visiting team visiting a participating State Party taking into account the circumstances of the particular visit. The size of the visiting team shall be kept to a minimum necessary for the proper fulfilment of its mandate. No national of the State Party subject to a confidence building visit shall be a member of the visiting team.

17. Nominated experts from participating State Parties shall not be utilised for longer than 3 weeks per annum.

18. The costs for a confidence building visit shall be borne by all parties involved in such visit.

Briefing

19. Upon arrival at the facility to be visited and before the commencement of the visit, the visiting team shall be briefed by a facility representative on the facility and the activities carried out there.

20. When the visit takes place on request of the visited State Party, the visiting team shall also be briefed by a representative of the visited State Party on the details of the request and the support required.

21. After the briefings the visiting team and representatives of the visited State Party and facility shall prepare a visit plan.

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Conduct of visits.

22. Representatives of the Visited State Party and of the facility shall accompany the Visit Team throughout the duration of the visit to the facility.

23. The visit shall be carried out according to the Visit Plan and in the least intrusive manner possible. The Visited State Party shall cooperate with the Visit Team in the achievement of the objectives of the mandate.

24. The Visit Team shall collect only that information necessary to carry out its mandate.

25. The duration of the visit shall be no more than [...] days unless extended by agreement of the Visit Team and the Visited State Party.

26. Visits may include inter alia the following activities in accordance with the agreed visit mandate :

(i) Review of declared, planned and other activities;
(ii) Visual overview of current activities;
(iii) Discussion of any anomalies;
(iv) Discussion of latest trends in safety, containment, quality control, etc. as relevant;
(v) Scientific exchanges.
(vi) Any support activities as required by the visited State Party.

Managed access

27. All the rules concerning managed access described in this Protocol shall apply to confidence building visits.

Reporting

28. A joint report by both participating State Parties and/or the Technical Secretariat shall be submitted to the Director General and shall be made available to all States Parties.

29. The report shall summarize the general activities undertaken during the visit and the factual findings of the Visit Team.

30. The report may make recommendations as appropriate and in cooperation with the facility representatives, in such areas as the fulfilment of declaration obligations, bio-safety standards, and good laboratory or manufacturing practices.

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