announcement at the beginning of the session that the Government of Venezuela intends to organize a regional seminar, for Latin America and the Caribbean, CD/PV.571 13 (Mr, Arteaga. Venezuela) on chemical weapons. For reasons of force majeure this seminar has been postponed to the first half of next year. Consultations are now being carried out with the Secretariat of the United Nations on finalization of the details. The seminar will seek to familiarize all the States of the region with the scope, purposes and objectives of the convention as well as with the verification machinery that will have to be established. The PRESIDENT (translated from French): I thank the representative of Venezuela, Ambassador Arteaga, for the statement he has made and the kind and encouraging words he had for me personally and for my country and people. I now give the floor to the representative of the Federal Republic of Germany, Ambassador von Wagner. Mr, von WAGNER (Federal Republic of Germany): Mr. President, allow me to take advantage of my first intervention before the Conference on Disarmament, to thank all of you, the Presidents for June and July, and members and observers, for accepting me in your midst with many warm words of welcome and for having made my start - through your help - an easy one. At the same time, I would like to congratulate you, Mr. President, on the assumption of your important post as President for the month of August. Mr. President, this year's session of the Conference on Disarmament is drawing to a close. It is time to take stock and render account of what we have achieved in the course of this session, in particular with regard to our most urgent task, the elaboration of a universal convention providing for a 
**Analysis**
The text appears to be a discussion about a regional seminar on chemical weapons organized by the Government of Venezuela, and it involves international organizations such as the United Nations. The language used is formal and diplomatic, indicating that the topic is likely related to international relations, security, or disarmament.

**Category**
International relations, Science and technology