Uruguay
Uruguay 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 1968, Tlatelolco) | |
| CSA with the IAEA | Yes (In force 1976) | |
| AP with the IAEA | Yes (In force 2004) | |
| BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the BWC | Yes (Acceded 1981) | |
| Party to the CWC | Yes (Ratified 1994) | |
| 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 (50%) |
| 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 | No |
Latest developments
At the Second Meeting of States Parties to the TPNW in 2023, Uruguay was appointed as a co-chair, together with South Africa, of the informal working group on universalisation of the Treaty.1 Throughout 2024, it carried out a number of activities in this capacity, most notably the convening of a high-level signing and ratification ceremony for the TPNW in the margins of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly in September 2024.2
At a high-level UN event to commemorate the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons on 26 September 2024, Uruguay urged ‘States that have not signed the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons to do so without delay’. ‘The very existence of nuclear weapons remains a real threat to humanity,’ it warned.3
In the First Committee of the UN General Assembly in October 2024, Uruguay welcomed the recent ratifications of the TPNW by Indonesia, Sierra Leone, and the Solomon Islands, and reiterated its call for all other states to ratify the Treaty, which ‘will allow us to move decisively towards a world free of nuclear weapons’.4
At the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) session in July 2024, Uruguay described the TPNW as complementary to the NPT.5
Uruguay was one of the co-sponsors for the 2024 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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Uruguay should continue to encourage other states to adhere to the TPNW.
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Uruguay should ensure that all the TPNW obligations are implemented domestically, through legal, administrative, and other necessary measures.