Central African Republic
The Central African Republic did not take part in the adoption of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) in 2017 but was one of the first States to sign the Treaty. It is currently examining the Treaty with a view to ratifying it.
TPNW Status
| Key weapons of mass destruction treaties | ||
|---|---|---|
| NUCLEAR WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the TPNW | No (Signed 2017) | |
| Party to the NPT | Yes (Acceded 1970) | |
| Ratified the CTBT | Yes (Ratified 2010) | |
| Party to an NWFZ | No (Signed 1996, Pelindaba) | |
| CSA with the IAEA | Yes (In force 2009) | |
| AP with the IAEA | Yes (In force 2009) | |
| BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the BWC | Yes (Ratified 2018) | |
| Party to the CWC | Yes (Ratified 2006) | |
| TPNW Art. 1(1) prohibitions: Compliance in 2025 | ||
|---|---|---|
| (a) | Develop, produce, manufacture, acquire | Compliant |
| Possess or stockpile | Compliant | |
| Test | Compliant | |
| (b) | Transfer | Compliant |
| (c) | Receive transfer or control | Compliant |
| (d) | Use | Compliant |
| Threaten to use | Compliant | |
| (e) | Assist, encourage or induce | Compliant |
| (f) | Seek or receive assistance | Compliant |
| (g) | Allow stationing, installation, deployment | Compliant |
| TPNW voting and participation | |
|---|---|
| UNGA resolution on TPNW (latest vote) | Voted no (2025) |
| Participated in 3MSP (2025) | No |
| Participated in 2MSP (2023) | No |
| Participated in 1MSP (2022) | No |
| Average MSP delegation size (% women) | N/A |
| Adoption of TPNW (7 July 2017) | Did not vote |
| Participated in TPNW negotiations (2017) | Yes |
| Negotiation mandate (A/RES/71/258) | Did not vote |
| Fissile material | |
|---|---|
| Nuclear facilities | No |
| Fissile material production | No |
| HEU stocks | No |
| Plutonium stocks | No |
| SQP with the IAEA | Yes (Revised) |
Latest developments
In the First Committee of the UN General Assembly in 2025, the Central African Republic (CAR) voted in favour of the annual resolution on the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), which welcomed the Treaty’s entry into force and called upon ‘all States that have not yet done so to sign, ratify, accept, approve, or accede to the Treaty at the earliest possible date’. However, in a subsequent plenary meeting of the General Assembly, it voted against the resolution, presumably in error.1
In the First Committee in October 2025, the African Group, of which the CAR is a member, said that it looked forward to the convening of the First Review Conference of the TPNW in 2026 under South Africa’s chairmanship. It reiterated its call for all members of the international community, especially nuclear-armed States and those ‘under the so-called nuclear umbrella’, to sign and ratify the TPNW at an early date and pursue the goal of a nuclear-weapon-free world.2
At the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) Preparatory Committee meeting in April 2025, the African Group welcomed ‘the historic adoption of the landmark’ TPNW in 2017, noting that it ‘does not undermine’ the NPT ‘but rather complements and strengthens the regime with the NPT as its foundation’. The Group urged all States that have not yet acceded to the TPNW to do so ‘at an early date’.3
Recommendations
-
The Central African Republic should urgently ratify the TPNW.
-
The Central African Republic should ratify the Pelindaba nuclear-weapon-free zone (NWFZ) treaty, which it signed in 1996.