[1] It was proposed by Adolfo López Mateos, the President of Mexico, and promoted by the Mexican diplomats Alfonso García Robles, Ismael Moreno Pino and Jorge Castañeda[2] as a response to the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962).

For his efforts in favor of the reduction of nuclear weapons, García Robles was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1982.

[3] The preparation of the text was entrusted to the Preparatory Commission for the Denuclearization of Latin America (COPREDAL), which established its headquarters in Mexico City and held four plenary sessions.

Signed in 1967, it was the first treaty of its kind covering a populated area of the world, establishing a nuclear-weapon-free zone stretching from the Rio Grande to Tierra del Fuego.

The treaty requires its parties to conclude comprehensive safeguards agreements with the International Atomic Energy Agency and has a mechanism for states to request special inspections in case of suspected violations.

Whereas Antarctica had earlier been declared a nuclear-weapon-free zone under the 1961 Antarctic Treaty, this was the first time such a ban was put in place over a large, populated area.COPREDAL was the Preparatory Commission for the Denuclearization of Latin America created after the Cuban Missile Crisis.

[5] The agreements made in the third set of sessions consisted of presenting a report of the previous changes to de Co-ordinating Committee and preparing the draft for the following Treaty of the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America.

Cuba was the last country to sign and to ratify, in 1995 and on 23 October 2002, completing signature and ratification by all 33 nations of Latin America and the Caribbean.

[11] The Mexican diplomat Alfonso García Robles received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1982 for his efforts in promoting the treaty.

[12] The basic agreement for Latin America is the possession of nuclear weapons directly or indirectly is prohibited.