New York — The United Nations has urged South Sudan, one of the
eight countries not party to the Chemical Weapons Convention
(CWC), to ensure it ratifies the treaty "without delay". Ban Ki-
moon, the UN Secretary-General and Ahmet ÃÂœzÃÂ¼mcÃÂ¼, the
Director-General of the Organization for the Prohibition of
Chemical Weapons (OPCW) made the call Tuesday, in a joint
communication to heads of states. The CWC is an arms control
agreement, which outlaws the production, stockpiling, and use of
chemical weapons. The agreement is administered by the OPCW, an
independent organization based in The Hague, Netherlands. Both
leaders, in letters, addressed to representatives of the eight
countries, reportedly underscore the importance of achieving the
universality of the Convention as a condition necessary to
attain a world free from chemical weapons. "The continuing
growth in the membership of the (OPCW)... is evidence that the
prohibition against the development, production, stockpiling and
use of chemical weapons constit