AG/RES. 1571 (XXVIII-O/98): Consolidation of the Regime Established in the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (Treaty of Tlatelolco)

(Resolution adopted at the third plenary session, held on June 2, 1998)

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

RECALLING resolution AG/RES. 1499 (XXVII-O/97), on the importance of achieving full consolidation of the regime established in the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (Treaty of Tlatelolco), within the framework of cooperation for security in the Hemisphere and regional contributions to global security;

RECOGNIZING:

That the creation of nuclear-weapon-free zones is an important step toward disarmament, which significantly strengthens all aspects of the international nonproliferation regime;
That the Treaty of Tlatelolco is one of the most momentous contributions to international law and to the ceaseless efforts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons and guarantee international peace and security; and

That the Treaty of Tlatelolco has become the model for the establishment of other nuclear-weapon-free zones in various regions of the world, such as the South Pacific (Treaty of Rarotonga), Southeast Asia (Treaty of Bangkok), and Africa (Treaty of Pelindaba), which, when they enter into force, will cover more than half the countries of the world and all of the Southern Hemisphere;

POINTING TO the success of the pioneering effort made by the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean to achieve the first populated nuclear-weapon-free zone, an undertaking which involves all nuclear-weapon states and the countries in the Hemisphere and elsewhere that, de jure or de facto, bear international responsibility for territories located within the Treaty's zone of application;

BEARING IN MIND that in 1997 the 30th anniversary of the opening for signature of the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (Treaty of Tlatelolco) was commemorated; and

TAKING INTO ACCOUNT that the Treaty of Tlatelolco is now in force for 32 sovereign states of the region,

RESOLVES:

1. To welcome the specific steps taken by a number of countries to consolidate the military denuclearization regime established by the Treaty of Tlatelolco. \

2. To urge the governments of Latin America and the Caribbean to contribute to consolidating the military denuclearization regime established by the Treaty and to its enhancement through the ratification, by all the signatory states, of the Treaty and the amendments arising from resolutions of the General Conference of the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL): 276 (E-V) of July 3, 1990; 268 (XII) of May 10, 1991; and 290 (VII) of August 26, 1992.

3. To renew its appeal to the governments that have not yet done so to negotiate, as soon as possible, multilateral or bilateral agreements with the International Atomic Energy Agency for application of that Agency's safeguards to their nuclear activities, as stipulated in Article 13 of the Treaty of Tlatelolco.

4. To recognize the importance of strengthening the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL) as the appropriate legal and political forum for ensuring unqualified observance of the Treaty in its zone of application and cooperation with the agencies of other nuclear-weapon-free zones.

5. To reaffirm its commitment to continue striving for a universal, genuine, and nondiscriminatory nonproliferation regime in all its aspects.