Mr. President, one of the main responsibilities of the Conference on Disarmament is the negotiation of a convention on the prohibition of chemical weapons. The Ad Hoc Committee dealing with this item has expended considerable effort on the achievement of that objective, an objective that we hope will be or can be reached above all else as rapidly as possible. An element that must characterize this instrument is universality. To achieve this, the Convention must fix as its scope total and complete prohibition. It must not entitle States which have chemical weapons to establish certain arsenals or to delay the destruction of all chemical weapons and their production facilities. In this connection and with regard to the bilateral agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union concerning chemical weapons, we welcome their decision to halt the production of these weapons and to begin their destruction. Nevertheless, as regards the multilateral process of destruction to which all the States parties to the convention would be committed, we cannot accept any premise that provides for the maintenance of certain arsenals till the end of the process of destruction. Another important aspect in negotiating the convention is the system of verification. This machinery will have to include a procedure that would operate spontaneously for verifying compliance with the obligations established by the convention, and a verification procedure that would operate upon request for determining the truth of any accusation alleging violation of the convention. Furthermore, the verification machinery must be as non-intrusive as possible. Consequently, we recognize the need for this instrument to include effective provisions for ensuring compliance. The system to be established should be as efficient, simple and, as we have stressed on other occasions, as least costly as possible. Before concluding this statement, I would like to reiterate our 
**Analysis**
The text appears to be focused on international relations and disarmament, specifically discussing the negotiation of a convention on the prohibition of chemical weapons. It highlights the importance of universality, verification, and compliance in the convention. The language used is formal and diplomatic, indicating that the text is likely a speech or statement made by a government representative or international organization.

**Category**
International relations, Humanitarian aid and relief