THE HAGUE: India has voted in support of a Russian-Chinese proposal to establish a working group to consider various proposals on an attribution mechanism on the use of chemical weapons in Syria, according to its explanation of vote in the recently-concluded session of the global chemical warfare watchdog here.
Making two separate explanations of the vote, Permanent Representative of India to the Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), Ambassador Venu Rajamony said India attaches high importance to the chemical weapons convention and stands for its full, effective and non-discriminatory implementation.
India had voted against the decision to set up an attribution mechanism at the fourth special session of the conference of states parties.
It pointed out then that the convention contains a finely balanced co-operative structure, bringing together various policy making organs and a technical secretariat headed by the Director General.
"The founding fathers viewed this as an indispensable balance between legitimacy and effective action under a member state driven convention, assisted by a technically proficient secretariat," it said.
India believes the decision on the attribution mechanism has adversely impacted this finely crafted balance in the convention by endowing unprecedented powers to the technical secretariat headed by the Director General, in place of primacy and oversight of the executive council and the conference of states parties, a statement issued by the Indian Embassy here said.
Further, the decision was adopted, not by consensus, but through a divisive vote, which went against the principle enshrined in the Convention that, as far as possible, decisions be taken by consensus, it said.
India has always emphasised the importance of consensus and the need for decisions to be taken by the states parties in consultation with each other, the statement said.
Rajamony said that India voted in favour of the proposal by Russia and China to establish an open-ended working group to consider various proposals related to the implementation of the decision on the attribution mechanism because it believes that such a working group could help rebuild the consensus amongst states parties and overcome the divisions over the attribution mechanism, the statement said.
In a separate explanation of vote after the voting on the programme and budget for 2019, Rajamony said India is committed to supporting the OPCW carry out the tasks entrusted upon it by the convention as well as enabling it to do so by providing requisite funds.
"It is regrettable that neither the executive council nor this conference of states parties was able to achieve consensus on the programme and budget of the OPCW for 2019 and other related decisions," it said.
India supported the amendments proposed by Iran to the budget proposal because it felt that the 'zero nominal growth' budget would have obtained the support of all parties even as states parties continue to seek the way forward on the attribution mechanism, the statement said.
However, despite the continued lack of consensus on the programme and budget on account of the attribution mechanism, India decided to abstain and not vote against the budget and related proposals, it said.
"This is because of India's abiding support for the OPCW in discharge of its mandate in line with the convention," the statement said.
Rajamony, during the 23rd session of the conference of state parties to the OPCW concluded in The Hague Tuesday, reiterated India's willingness for all discussions with states parties to find ways and means to strengthen the convention and its effective implementation, within the framework of the convention.
India is a founder member of the Hague-based OPCW and is committed to supporting it carry out the tasks entrusted upon it by the convention.
It was set up by the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention under which almost every country in the world pledged to give up chemical arms.
According to the global chemical warfare watchdog, it has managed destruction of 96.5 per cent of the world's chemical weapons stocks.
Recognising its efforts, the OPCW was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2013.