Introduction

on 16 September 2009, the Convention, along with the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, achieved universal participation by 196 parties, it became the first set of treaties of any kind in the history of the United Nations system to achieve that aspiration. The ozone treaties maintained universal participation when, three years later, South Sudan – the newest member of the United Nations – acceded to the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol.

The universal ratification of the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol marked the culmination of many years of efforts by the international community to ensure that the ozone protection treaties achieved global support and implementation. The Ozone Secretariat would like to extend its warmest congratulations to all the countries in the world for this remarkable achievement.

• Section 1 contains the full text of the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer (1985).
• Section 2 contains the decisions of the Conference of the Parties and will be updated regularly to incorporate the decisions adopted by the Conference in future. The decisions are presented in subsections relating to each article of the Convention.
• Section 3 contains the rules of procedure for the meetings of the Conference of the Parties and the Meetings of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol.