NEWS

Visit to the headquarters of the Brazilian-Argentine Agency for Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials (ABACC)

The OPANAL Secretariat expresses gratitude for the invitation to visit the headquarters of the Brazilian-Argentine Agency for Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials and the warm reception by the ABACC staff.

The Agency is composed of a Commission consisting of four representatives, two from Argentina and two from Brazil, and a Secretariat organized into technical and administrative sectors.

The ABACC manages and implements the Common System of Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials for Argentina and Brazil, ensuring to both states, as well as the international community, that all nuclear materials and facilities in both countries are used exclusively for peaceful purposes.

ABACC and OPANAL have a cooperation agreement signed on March 2, 1994, which can be consulted here.

VII OPANAL Course on Disarmament and Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

 

7/12/2023.- From 5 to 7 December 2023, the VII edition of the OPANAL Course on Disarmament and Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons was held at the Diplomatic Academy of Ecuador “Galo Plaza Lasso”. Read the full story here.

Safeguards Course in Laboratory (LLNL) by the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS) and Lawrence Livermore National in Monterey California, June 5-9, 2023

5-9/06/2023. One-week course provided by the Middlebury Institute for International Studies in Monterey (MIIS) and the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), in support of the Department of State (DOE), in Monterey, California.

XXVII Special Session of the General Conference of the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL)

17/11/2022. On 17 November 2022, in Mexico City, the XXVII Special Session of the General Conference of the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL) was held, with the participation of more than 80 delegates from Member States and States Parties to the Protocols I and II to the Treaty of Tlatelolco; as well as representatives of international organizations (International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA; Brazilian-Argentine Agency for Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials, ABACC; Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization, CTBTO; and International Committee of the Red Cross, ICRC); and civil society organizations (International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, ICAN). Read the full story here.

First Committee of the 77th United Nations General Assembly

17/10/2022.- The Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL) participates in the First Committee of the 77th United Nations General Assembly. The First Committee is responsible for discussing exclusively issues on disarmament and other issues related to international security, and takes place from 3 October to 4 November 2022 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. Read the press release here.

First Meeting of States Parties to the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW)

23/06/2022.- The Secretary-General of the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL), Ambassador Flávio Roberto Bonzanini, took part in the First Meeting of State Parties at the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). Read the full story here.

Joint Communiqué of the Secretary-General of OPANAL and the Executive Secretary of AFCONE on the occasion of the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding 

1/01/2021.- Read the Joint Communiqué of the Secretary-General of OPANAL and the Executive Secretary of AFCONE on the occasion of the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding between both Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zones here.

5th Conference of States Parties to the African Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty (Treaty of Pelindaba).

21/10/2021.-On 21 October 2021, the Secretary General of the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL), Ambassador Flavio Roberto Bonzanini, participated in the 5th Conference of States Parties to the African Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty (Treaty of Pelindaba). Read the full story here.

XXVII Session of the General Conference of the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL)

30/10/2021. On the 30 September, 2021, the XXVII Session of the General Conference of the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL) was held with the participation of more than 90 delegates from Member States; representatives of the Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zones established by the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty (Treaty of Rarotonga), the Treaty on the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone (Treaty of Bangkok), the African Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty (Treaty of Pelindaba) and the Treaty on a Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone in Central Asia (Treaty of Semipalatinsk); and other international entities and organizations such as the Brazilian-Argentine Agency for Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials (ABACC), the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA). Read the full story here.

Joint Communiqué of the Secretary-General of OPANAL and the Executive Secretary of AFCONE on the occasion of the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons

22/01/2021.- Read the Joint Communiqué of the Secretary-General of OPANAL and the Executive Secretary of AFCONE on the occasion of the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons here.

Mexico hosts the VIII edition of the OPANAL Course on Disarmament and Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

15/01/2024.- Today concluded successfully the Course of the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL) on Disarmament and Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, organized with the support of the Matías Romero Institute (IMR) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mexico (SRE), from January 15 to 25.  Read the full story here.

Guatemala hosts the fifth edition of the OPANAL Course on Disarmament and Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons

15/11/2022.- From November 8 to 10, 2022, the OPANAL Course on Disarmament and Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons was held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Guatemala. Read the full story here.

Visit of the students of the National Autonomous University of Mexico

27/10/2022.- The Secretariat of the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL) welcomed the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) students of  Arms Control and Disarmament, as well as National Security and Foreign Policy, by Dr. María Cristina Rosas, to discuss the work of OPANAL, the history, importance and relevance of the Treaty of Tlatelolco.

Tenth Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)

04/08/2022.- The Secretary-General of OPANAL participates in the general debate at the X Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). Read the press release here.

The eighth edition of the Summer School on Nuclear Disarmament and Non-proliferation for diplomats from Latin America and the Caribbean

11/07/2022.- The eighth edition of the Summer School on Nuclear Disarmament and Non-proliferation for diplomats from Latin America and the Caribbean has kicked off in Mexico City. Read the press release here.

55 Anniversary of the Treaty of Tlatelolco

14/02/2022.- On 14 February 2022, a commemorative event was held on the occasion of the 55th Anniversary of the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean, also known as the Treaty of Tlatelolco, which established the first region completely free of nuclear weapons. Read the full story here.

The Secretary General of OPANAL participated in the First Committee of the 76th General Assembly of the United Nations.

12/10/2021.- The Secretary of the Agency for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (OPANAL), Ambassador Flávio Roberto Bonzanini, participated in the General Debate of the First Committee of the 76th General Assembly of the United Nations. The First Committee is responsible for discussing exclusively issues on disarmament and other issues related to international security, and takes place from 4 October to 4 November 2021 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, under the restrictions related to COVID-19, with limited in-person and remote representation. Read the full story here.

VII Summer School on Nuclear Disarmament and Non-proliferation 2021

13/07/2021.- The seventh edition of the Summer School on Nuclear Disarmament and Non-proliferation for diplomats from Latin America and the Caribbean was held from 28 June to 9 July 2021, with 37 participants from 17 countries. Read the full story here.

54 Anniversary of the Treaty of Tlatelolco

15/02/2021.-On February 15, 2021, the commemorative event was held on the occasion of the 54th anniversary of the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean, also known as the Treaty of Tlatelolco, which more than five decades ago established the Latin America and the Caribbean as the first region completely free of nuclear weapons. Read more.