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A Swiss diplomat, Sabrina Dallafior is taking over as director-general of the OPCW in July 2026 <\/p>\n
Illustration: Kai Reusser Images: OPCW\/Freepik <\/p>\n
Swiss\u00a0ambassador\u00a0Sabrina\u00a0Dallafior\u00a0will take\u00a0the helm\u00a0of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)\u00a0as\u00a0global tensions and technological developments\u00a0threaten\u00a0to undermine\u00a0progress\u00a0in\u00a0eliminating\u00a0stockpiles of chemical\u00a0weapons.\u00a0\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
This content was published on <\/p>\n
February 14, 2026 – 10:00\n<\/p>\n
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\n I cover international relations with a focus on Switzerland, lead journalistic investigations, and conduct deeply personal interviews on challenging topics.
\nOver 25 years in journalism. Graduated from Moscow State University’s Faculty of Journalism and the French Press Institute in Paris. Former TV\/radio host in France and Russia. I am a published author and documentary filmmaker who has interviewed presidents and rock stars. <\/p>\n
After 25 years as a Swiss diplomat,\u00a0Sabrina\u00a0Dallafior\u00a0 is\u00a0taking\u00a0over\u00a0as\u00a0director-general of the\u00a0OPCWExternal link<\/a>\u00a0in July,\u00a0after\u00a0more than a decade in which\u00a0men,\u00a0women\u00a0and children\u00a0from Syria to Ukraine and\u00a0Britain\u00a0to Malaysia\u00a0have\u00a0been\u00a0increasingly targeted\u00a0with\u00a0often\u00a0indiscriminate use of\u00a0deadly toxins.\u00a0<\/p>\n She will have to deal with\u00a0risks of proliferation\u00a0from\u00a0rogue states\u00a0and terror groups gaining\u00a0access to\u00a0technologies such as drones and artificial intelligence\u00a0(AI).\u00a0 <\/p>\n That\u2019s on\u00a0top of\u00a0weakening support for the international agencies that contained conflict after the Second World War as\u00a0the United States, China and Russia jostle for global influence.<\/p>\n A team of Chinese Abandoned Chemical Weapons (ACW) experts excavate and remove the chemical bombs from a site, which is opposite a Chinese middle school in Mudanjiang, northeastern China\u2019s Heilongjiang province 05 July 2006. <\/p>\n AFP <\/p>\n A\u00a0previous three-year stint as\u00a0ambassador to\u00a0the UN-linked Conference on\u00a0Disarmament in\u00a0Geneva would provide essential experience for the job, the Swiss government said.<\/p>\n \u201cHer selection from a pool of qualified candidates highlights Ambassador\u00a0Dallafior\u2019s\u00a0merit,\u00a0and her recognised expertise in arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation,\u201d Jonas Montani,\u00a0a\u00a0foreign\u00a0ministry\u00a0spokesperson, told\u00a0Swissinfo.\u00a0<\/p>\n What\u00a0was\u00a0the chemical weapons agency\u00a0set up to do?\u00a0<\/p>\n The OPCW\u00a0was\u00a0created\u00a0in 1997 to oversee implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention, adopted in Paris\u00a0four years earlier.\u00a0It\u00a0banned\u00a0development, production, stockpiling,\u00a0transfer\u00a0and use of chemical weapons.\u00a0<\/p>\n The\u00a0Convention\u00a0has been\u00a0ratified by 193\u00a0nations,\u00a0with only\u00a0North Korea, Egypt and South Sudan\u00a0not\u00a0signing,\u00a0and\u00a0Israel signing\u00a0without ratifying, a requirement for the treaty to become legally binding.\u00a0<\/p>\n The organisation, while not a United\u00a0Nations\u00a0agency,\u00a0works closely with\u00a0the UN\u00a0and\u00a0conducts\u00a0round-the-clock inspections at weapons destruction sites, investigates\u00a0suspected\u00a0attacks\u00a0and\u00a0can\u00a0send inspectors or experts to any signatory country.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n More<\/p>\n More <\/p>\n Foreign Affairs\n <\/p>\n A \u0441entury of \u0441hemical warfare: why the global ban matters\u00a0 <\/p>\n This content was published on <\/p>\n Feb 14, 2026 <\/p>\n Using chemical weapons has long been regarded as\u00a0overstepping the boundary of\u00a0acceptable warfare. As\u00a0early as\u00a01675, France and Germany agreed in\u00a0Strasbourg to\u00a0ban poisoned bullets. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Read more: A \u0441entury of \u0441hemical warfare: why the global ban matters\u00a0 The\u00a0body\u00a0was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize\u00a0in 2013\u00a0for\u00a0helping\u00a0eliminate\u00a0stockpiles, partly\u00a0because of\u00a0its\u00a0work during the Syrian civil war\u00a0in\u00a0which\u00a0thousands of civilians\u00a0have been\u00a0killed\u00a0in\u00a0repeated attacks\u00a0by\u00a0its\u00a0government,\u00a0as well\u00a0as\u00a0by\u00a0jihadist\u00a0terrorists.\u00a0<\/p>\n The OPCW is neither a court nor a prosecutor. It\u00a0seeks\u00a0to\u00a0establish\u00a0responsibility but does not issue verdicts.\u00a0<\/p>\n Reports are\u00a0forwardedExternal link<\/a>\u00a0to the United Nations Security Council and may serve as a basis for resolutions,\u00a0investigations\u00a0and international pressure.\u00a0States use its findings\u00a0in preparing\u00a0punitive\u00a0sanctions.\u00a0<\/p>\n What\u2019s\u00a0the\u00a0background of\u00a0the\u00a0new director general?\u00a0<\/p>\n Born in\u00a0the northern Swiss city of\u00a0Basel,\u00a0Dallafior\u00a0studied\u00a0Eastern European history and Russian studies before joining the\u00a0diplomatic\u00a0service in 2000.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Her career has taken her from the Swiss missions to the European Union and NATO\u00a0military alliance\u00a0in Brussels to senior roles in Bern focused on multilateral security policy.\u00a0Before her\u00a0latest\u00a0appointment, she\u00a0was Switzerland\u2019s\u00a0ambassador to Finland.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI will accord the highest importance to upholding the norm against chemical weapons,\u201d she said in\u00a0the\u00a0statementExternal link<\/a>\u00a0announcing her appointment, adding that\u00a0its\u00a0\u201clong-term sustainability\u201d\u00a0must\u00a0be ensured by investigating all credible allegations.\u00a0<\/p>\n The\u00a0appointment\u00a0of\u00a0Dallafior\u00a0to the head of a major international organisation\u00a0represents\u00a0a success for Swiss diplomacy. <\/p>\n Filling such positions with Swiss politicians or diplomats is a strategic\u00a0objective\u00a0of the\u00a0foreign ministry, aimed at safeguarding Swiss interests <\/a>and enabling Switzerland to help shape international policy. <\/p>\n In addition, Switzerland is home to the Spiez Laboratory,External link<\/a> a world-leading specialist institution that is part of the network of OPCW-designated laboratories.\u00a0<\/p>\n What\u00a0attacks\u00a0has the agency worked on\u00a0and\u00a0what has it achieved?\u00a0<\/p>\n Syria\u00a0was the most prominent\u00a0location\u00a0of chemical weapons attacks\u00a0during the 2010s\u00a0as\u00a0President Bashar al-Assad, supported by Russia,\u00a0clung to power\u00a0following\u00a0so-called Arab Spring\u00a0protests that spread across the Middle East and North Africa.\u00a0<\/p>\n Even after Assad\u2019s ousting\u00a0in 2024, more than 100 chemical weapons sites\u00a0were believed to remain in the country, much higher than prior\u00a0estimates, the OPCW\u00a0saidExternal link<\/a>\u00a0last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n Since Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion of Ukraine\u00a0in 2022, both Moscow and Kyiv have repeatedly accused each other of using chemical weapons. <\/p>\n At Ukraine\u2019s request, the OPCW provided technical and protective\u00a0assistance\u00a0and confirmed the use of banned chemical substances on the battlefield in reports released in 2024 and 2025.\u00a0<\/p>\n The\u00a0organisation\u00a0has also been involved in\u00a0probes\u00a0into high-profile political poisonings, including\u00a0the\u00a0Russian opposition politician\u00a0Alexei Navalny with the nerve agent Novichok<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a02020\u00a0and\u00a0an\u00a0attack on former spy Sergei SkripalExternal link<\/a>\u00a0and his daughter in the UK in\u00a02018.\u00a0Britain\u00a0and independent investigators\u00a0produced evidence\u00a0of the involvement of\u00a0Russian military intelligence in the assassination attempt,\u00a0which\u00a0Moscow\u00a0denied.\u00a0<\/p>\n After\u00a0the\u00a0Skripal case,\u00a0and\u00a0despite opposition from Russia, OPCW member\u00a0countries\u00a0agreed\u00a0to expand the\u00a0agency\u2019s mandateExternal link<\/a>\u00a0to\u00a0allow it to\u00a0document\u00a0responsibility for use of chemical weapons.\u00a0Previously inspectors were\u00a0only\u00a0permitted\u00a0to investigate\u00a0suspected attacks, and identify toxins, without saying who carried them out.<\/p>\n Perhaps\u00a0the\u00a0organisation\u2019s greatest\u00a0success\u00a0to date was\u00a0its\u00a0announcementExternal link<\/a>\u00a0in 2023\u00a0that\u00a0it had verified\u00a0the destruction of\u00a0all\u00a0the world\u2019s\u00a0\u201cdeclared\u201d chemical stockpiles, or those that\u00a0member nations\u00a0had\u00a0admitted to holding.\u00a0<\/p>\n How is the\u00a0chemical weapons\u00a0ban\u00a0being undermined?\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Despite\u00a0such\u00a0achievements, accusations\u00a0remain\u00a0that\u00a0countries\u00a0are still\u00a0using\u00a0banned substances against foreign enemies,\u00a0as well as their own populations.\u00a0\u00a0 The government of Iran is\u00a0also\u00a0among those accused\u00a0of using\u00a0toxins,\u00a0according to a\u00a0reportExternal link<\/a>\u00a0by\u00a0the\u00a0Chemical Weapons Convention Coalition, a network of\u00a0NGOs\u00a0that\u00a0partnersExternal link<\/a>\u00a0with the OPCW\u00a0to support\u00a0treaty\u00a0objectives.\u00a0<\/p>\n The\u00a0regime\u00a0has\u00a0used live\u00a0munitions\u00a0against\u00a0mass protests\u00a0in recent months, with state television\u00a0saying\u00a0more than 3,000\u00a0have died.\u00a0Others\u00a0estimate\u00a0the figure at\u00a0as much as\u00a0ten\u00a0times\u00a0higherExternal link<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n While\u00a0Dallafior\u00a0has\u00a0stressed\u00a0that\u00a0protecting\u00a0the norm against\u00a0use of\u00a0chemical weapons\u00a0is her top priority,\u00a0institutions such as Britain\u2019s\u00a0Ministry of DefenceExternal link<\/a> and InterpolExternal link<\/a> have\u00a0warned\u00a0that\u00a0it is\u00a0at\u00a0risk of\u00a0being eroded.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe taboo against chemicals weapons use has been degraded in the past decade,\u201d\u00a0Natasha Hall, a senior associate for the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, wrote in a\u00a0researchExternal link<\/a>\u00a0report\u00a0in October 2024 after\u00a0interviewing\u00a0US and allied government officials, members of the OPCW\u00a0and\u00a0other\u00a0experts in the field.\u00a0\u201cActors would likely\u00a0choose\u00a0a gradual approach to test the limits of international condemnation,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cEscalating tensions between the United States and Russia, coupled with fractures in the international community, challenge existing mechanisms for chemicals weapons control and accountability,\u201d Hall\u00a0added in the report for the Washington thinktank.\u00a0<\/p>\n A further threat comes from the spread of\u00a0advanced computing,\u00a0drone technology\u00a0and\u00a0so-called dual-use\u00a0chemicals that can be utilised for civilian or military\u00a0purposes.\u00a0<\/p>\n The OPCW\u2019s current\u00a0director-general,\u202fFernando Arias,\u00a0saidExternal link<\/a>\u00a0in November that the body was increasingly\u00a0focused on how to ensure\u00a0that\u00a0technological advances reinforced rather than undermined\u00a0its verification efforts and oversight of\u00a0the weapons convention.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cEmerging technologies,\u00a0including artificial intelligence and the evolution of dual-use chemicals,\u00a0are further complicating detection and enforcement,\u201d\u00a0said\u00a0Jonas\u00a0Montani\u00a0at the Swiss foreign ministry.\u00a0\u201cAll of this is taking place against a backdrop of growing geopolitical tensions, where trust between states is weakening and collective security mechanisms are being put to the test.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Edited by Tony Barrett\/vm\/ts\u00a0<\/p>\n More <\/p>\n What distinguishes war crimes from other criminal offences? <\/p>\n Should war crimes be tried as criminal offences? 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