It, along with the Convention on Assistance in the Case of a Nuclear Accident or Radiological Emergency, was adopted in direct response to the April 1986 Chernobyl disaster.
Significantly, the Soviet Union and the Ukrainian SSR—the states that were responsible for the Chernobyl disaster—both signed the treaty at the conference and quickly ratified it.
A further 8 states have signed the treaty but not ratified it - Afghanistan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Holy See, Niger, North Korea, Sierra Leone, Sudan, and Zimbabwe.
National competent authorities can use this web portal to fulfill their information and reporting obligations in case of an emergency.
Alternative reporting methods and a description of further details are outlined in the corresponding IAEA Operations Manual for Incident and Emergency Communication.