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Decision X/21: Compliance with the Montreal Protocol by Belarus

The Tenth Meeting of the Parties decided in Dec. X/21:

  1. To note that Belarus ratified the London Amendment on 10 July 1996. The country is classified as a non-Article 5 Party under the Protocol and, for 1996, reported positive consumption of 599.7 ODP tonnes of Annex A and B substances, none of which was for essential uses exempted by the Parties. As a consequence, in 1996, Belarus was in non-compliance with its control obligations under Articles 2A through 2E of the Montreal Protocol. Belarus also expresses a belief that this situation will continue through at least the year 2000, necessitating annual review by the Implementation Committee and the Parties until such time as Belarus comes into compliance;
  2. To note that although Belarus submitted a list of specific projects with international financing that will reduce national consumption, it has not responded to the request of the Implementation Committee from its twentieth meeting for a phase-out plan with specific benchmarks demonstrating a schedule for coming into compliance with control obligations under Articles 2A through 2E of the Montreal Protocol. The Parties also note that in a verbal presentation to the Implementation Committee on 16 November 1998, Belarus announced the recent adoption, on 13 November 1998, of a resolution by its Cabinet of Ministers committing Belarus, through regulation:
  • To a phase-out in the consumption of Annex A and B substances by 1 January 2000.

However, Belarus noted that there may be difficulty in phasing out consumption for refrigeration associated with agriculture;

  • To closely monitor the progress of Belarus with regard to the phase-out of ozone-depleting substances, particularly towards meeting the specific commitments noted above. In this regard, the Parties request that Belarus submit a complete copy of its country programme, and subsequent updates, if any, to the Ozone Secretariat. To the degree that Belarus is working towards and meeting the specific time-based commitments noted above and continues to report data annually demonstrating a decrease in imports and consumption, Belarus should continue to be treated in the same manner as a Party in good standing. In this regard, Belarus should continue to receive international assistance to enable it to meet these commitments in accordance with item A of the indicative list of measures that might be taken by a Meeting of the Parties in respect of non-compliance. However, through this decision the Parties caution Belarus, in accordance with item B of the indicative list of measures, that in the event that the country fails to meet the commitments noted above in the times specified, the Parties shall consider measures, consistent with item C of the indicative list of measures. These measures could include the possibility of actions that may be available under Article 4, designed to ensure that the supply of CFCs and halons that is the subject of non-compliance is ceased, and that exporting Parties are not contributing to a continuing situation of non-compliance.