HARARE, Oct. 19 (Xinhuanet) -- Zimbabwean Defense Minister Sydney Sekeramayi said on Tuesday that although the country does not possess any offensive weapons, it will always abide by the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) to make the world a safer place.

กกกก"We have no offensive chemical materials on our soil but, like other countries, have a cause to worry about the possibility of their use by those that possess them," he said.

    "The reason why we joined the convention was not merely becauseof international solidarity, but we believed, as we still do now, in its aims and goals."

    Sekeramayi made these remarks during the official opening of the Second Regional Meeting of African State Parties to the Chemical Weapons and Convention.

    The CWC is an international treaty that bans the development, production, stockpiling and use of chemical weapons and also advocates for their destruction.

    Zimbabwe has been a signatory of the convention since 1993 and was among the original group of state parties when the convention entered into force seven years ago.

    The minister said because of the growing emergence of chemical industries in the world, more ought to be done to minimize cases of chemical accidents.

    "There is need for authorities not to only come to aid in the event of use of these hideous weapons, but also to provide advice and training in the defense against such weapons," he said.

    "Others might say there is no need to train staff for an unlikely event, but with the development of the chemical industry on the continent, the possibility of chemical accidents is ever present and trained manpower will always be needed."

    Chemical weapons have been a global cause for concern, especially in these days of international terrorism and mass destruction.

    According to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), close to 90,000 people died during World War 1 as a result of mustard gas attacks. During the liberation struggle inZimbabwe, many blacks died from such chemical attacks by the Rhodesian regime.

    The two-day forum, organized by the OPCW, brings together experts from across the world.

    OPCW is an international body that oversees the use of chemicalweapons.

    It has a membership of 166 state parties that have signed the CWC. Enditem