It looks like things are getting pretty tense in the final hours of the Second Review Conference and there is uncertainty about whether or not they will be able to produce a consensus declaration. At this point it seems that in order to gain consensus, any declaration produced will be very weak.

Richard Guthrie provides a look at the final push of the conference in his latest report “The Penultimate Day: Running close to the wire.”

To supplement his report, Richard also sent out this informal email update:

This is an informal update and the outline provided here will be filled in with more details in the regular report when it comes out, probably on Monday. I’ll also try to produce an informal update at whatever time the conference concludes.

The discussions between around 20 states to try and hammer out a final document continue. They have now been working at it so long that the commitment to try to see this through to the end is clear. However, everything is taking longer than is expected.

There is a meeting of the Committee of the Whole pencilled in for 4.30, in order to read through the text from the “other meeting”, but it is not yet clear that the text will be ready by that time.

Most delegates are lingering around the OPCW building waiting for news, while the other meeting is happening in the Convention Centre next door.