Chile
Chile is an example to be followed by other states, as it has adhered to all of the seven key treaties in the legal architecture on disarmament and non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, in addition to being party to a nuclear-weapon-free zone (NWFZ) treaty.
TPNW Status
| Key weapons of mass destruction treaties | ||
|---|---|---|
| NUCLEAR WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the TPNW | Yes (Ratified 2021) | |
| Party to the NPT | Yes (Acceded 1995) | |
| Ratified the CTBT | Yes (Ratified 2000, Annex 2 state) | |
| Party to an NWFZ | Yes (Ratified 1974, Tlatelolco) | |
| CSA with the IAEA | Yes (In force 1995) | |
| AP with the IAEA | Yes (In force 2003) | |
| BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the BWC | Yes (Ratified 1980) | |
| Party to the CWC | Yes (Ratified 1996) | |
| TPNW Art. 1(1) prohibitions: Compliance in 2024 | ||
|---|---|---|
| (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 yes (2024) |
| Participated in 2MSP (2023) | Yes |
| Participated in 1MSP (2022) | Yes |
| Average MSP delegation size (% women) | 3 (37.5%) |
| Adoption of TPNW (7 July 2017) | Voted yes |
| Participated in TPNW negotiations (2017) | Yes |
| Negotiation mandate (A/RES/71/258) | Voted yes |
| Fissile material | |
|---|---|
| Nuclear facilities | Yes |
| Fissile material production | No |
| HEU stocks | Cleared |
| Plutonium stocks | No |
| SQP with the IAEA | No |
Latest developments
At a high-level UN event to commemorate the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons on 26 September 2024, Chile expressed support for the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) and invited all UN member states that have not yet done so to sign and ratify it. It said that the TPNW ‘contributes to the multilateral order in the fight against the possession of [nuclear] weapons’.1
At the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) Preparatory Committee session in July 2024, Chile welcomed the TPNW’s entry into force, ‘understanding that the only way to ensure that this type of weapon is never used again is through its total prohibition’. ‘While recognising that the NPT is still the cornerstone of the global architecture of disarmament and non-proliferation, we believe that the TPNW, far from weakening it, reinforces the structure of the NPT and strengthens the implementation of its three pillars,’ it said.2
In the First Committee of the UN General Assembly in October 2024, Chile said that the TPNW ‘strengthens and is fully compatible with the NPT’. It urged States ‘to sign, ratify and accede to the TPNW’ and ‘to vote in favour of the resolutions to be submitted [to the First Committee] in connection with this Treaty’.3
Chile was one of the co-sponsors for the 2024 UN General Assembly resolution on the TPNW, which 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’.4
Recommendations
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Chile should continue to encourage other states to adhere to the Treaty.
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Chile should ensure that all the TPNW obligations are implemented domestically, through legal, administrative, and other necessary measures.