Argentina and weapons of mass destruction

The Argentine military government of 1976 began a nuclear weapons program in the 1980s, which was scrapped when democracy was restored in 1983. As of July 2008, Argentina is the first and only Spanish-speaking country in the world to have ever started an offensive nuclear program.

Missile systems

During the 1980s, the "Alacrán" (English: Scorpion) and "Cóndor 2" missiles were developed. While the "Cóndor 2", with a range of around 1,000 kilometres, was officially scrapped during the Menem administration under pressure from the United States government, the current status of the "Alacrán" remains unknown.

Chemical weapons

Argentina acceded to the Geneva Protocol on 12 May 1969 and has been active in non-proliferation efforts, ratified the Biological Weapons Convention in 1979 and the Chemical Weapons Convention on 2 October 1995.

In September 1991 Argentina, together with Brazil and Chile, signed the Mendoza Declaration, which commits signatories not to use, develop, produce, acquire, stock, or transfer —directly or indirectly— chemical or biological weapons.

Nuclear weapons

Argentina conducted a nuclear weapon research program under military rule of 1978 but was abandoned under democratisation in 1983. In 1991 the parliaments of Argentina and Brazil ratified a bilateral inspection agreement that created the Argentine-Brazilian Agency for Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials (ABACC) to verify both countries' pledges to use nuclear energy only for peaceful purposes. On February 10, 1995, Argentina acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty as a non-nuclear weapon state. Argentina continues to use nuclear power in non-military roles, and is noted as an exporter of civilian use nuclear technology.

ources

*cite news | url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/nuclearweapons/ | title=The Nuclear Club: Membership has its kilotons | publisher=CBC News Online | date=April 12, 2006 | accessdate=April 2006
*cite web | author = Nuclear Threat Initiative | title = Argentina | url = http://www.nti.org/e_research/profiles/Argentina/index.html | accessdate = May 1 | accessyear = 2006