Costa Rica
Costa Rica 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 2018) | |
| Party to the NPT | Yes (Ratified 1970) | |
| Ratified the CTBT | Yes (Ratified 2001) | |
| Party to an NWFZ | Yes (Ratified 1969, Tlatelolco) | |
| CSA with the IAEA | Yes (In force 1979) | |
| AP with the IAEA | Yes (In force 2011) | |
| BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the BWC | Yes (Ratified 1973) | |
| Party to the CWC | Yes (Ratified 1996) | |
| 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 yes (2025) |
| Participated in 3MSP (2025) | Yes |
| Participated in 2MSP (2023) | Yes |
| Participated in 1MSP (2022) | Yes |
| Average MSP delegation size (% women) | 4 (77%) |
| 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 | No |
| Fissile material production | No |
| HEU stocks | No |
| Plutonium stocks | No |
| SQP with the IAEA | Yes (Revised) |
Latest developments
At the Third Meeting of States Parties (3MSP) to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) in March 2025, Costa Rica said: ‘This Treaty strengthens the global disarmament architecture, facilitates implementation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), and reinforces the principles of the United Nations Charter, ensuring that peace is built on law and cooperation rather than on the threat of destruction.’1
It described the TPNW as ‘more than a legal instrument prohibiting nuclear weapons—it is a testament to the power of international solidarity and an affirmation that States, working together, can construct a safer and more just world’. It said that universalization of the TPNW is imperative: ‘We must continue to work with determination and conviction to ensure that this Treaty is fully implemented, widely supported, and strengthened over time.’
At the NPT Preparatory Committee meeting in May 2025, Costa Rica said: ‘The TPNW represents humanity’s unequivocal response to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons by establishing comprehensive prohibitions and positive obligations for victim assistance and environmental remediation. Far from undermining the NPT, the TPNW provides a concrete pathway to fulfil Article VI obligations neglected for over five decades.’2
At a high-level event on 26 September 2025 marking the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, Costa Rica emphasized the technical feasibility of verifiably eliminating nuclear weapons, noting that the TPNW ‘provides the legal framework for elimination, while the [International Atomic Energy Agency] IAEA has the technical capacity to verify that fissile material from dismantled weapons is used exclusively for peaceful purposes’.3
In the general debate of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Costa Rica, Arnoldo Ricardo André Tinoco, expressed concern that nuclear weapons ‘are once again being considered by their possessors as central to national security strategies and are wielded as tools of coercion’. He urged States to recognize that the TPNW ‘represents a decisive step toward fulfilling the very first resolution adopted by this Assembly and an essential element of the nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation regime.’4
In the First Committee of the UN General Assembly in October 2025, Costa Rica reiterated its call for all States to sign and ratify the TPNW—a treaty that ‘fills a critical legal gap’ as ‘the first legally binding instrument comprehensively prohibiting nuclear weapons’.5
Costa Rica co-sponsored the 2025 UN General Assembly resolution on the 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’.6
Recommendations
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Costa Rica should continue to encourage other states to adhere to the TPNW.
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Costa Rica should ensure that all the TPNW obligations are implemented domestically, through legal, administrative, and other necessary measures.