near future, thus making 1990 a year of real disarmament. We are convinced that the headway made so far in bilateral and regional disarmament negotiations needs to be strengthened and supported by purposeful action at the multilateral level. In this context, the role of the CD as a unique forum for bringing together all militarily significant States in the world cannot be underestimated. It is worth mentioning here that a record number of observers actively participated in the work of the Conference during its spring session, thus assisting in the search for universally acceptable solutions . The negotiations on a CW convention yielded further progress this spring - this is our assessment. We regard the drafting of texts on article IV and the annex to article IV, as well as article V and the annex to article V, as an achievement of real significance. The close co-operation between the Soviet Union and the United States produced results which contributed to agreement on important provisions concerning the destruction of CW and CW production facilities. Furthermore, procedures for the investigation of the alleged use of chemical weapons have been developed, and the inspection protocols and annexes have been further streamlined. Solutions are taking shape on a number of legal issues, such as amendments, settlement of disputes and measures to redress a situation and to ensure compliance. We deem it especially remarkable that this year progress has not been confined to provisions of a merely procedural character, but has been extended to matters of substance. This is all the more important since other matters of substance, such as completion of the verification system by solving the questions of ad hoc inspection and inspection on request, are still awaiting solution. We should make use of the recess to further address these issues. Material offered by 
**Analysis**
The text appears to be discussing international relations and disarmament, specifically the progress made in chemical weapons disarmament negotiations. The language used is formal and diplomatic, suggesting a high-level political or governmental context.

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