Anti-terrorism treaty in force.

• Author: Conaway, Janelle
• Position: Brief Article

THE INTER-AMERICAN convention Against Terrorism entered into force on July 10, following its ratification during the recent OAS General Assembly by Peru, Mexico, and Nicaragua. The treaty, which had been adopted by the General Assembly last year in Barbados, needed to be ratified by six countries to take effect, and thee--Antigua and Barbuda, Canada, and El Salvador--had taken that step previously.

In Santiago, Chile, three heads of delegation--Mexico's Under Secretary for Latin America and the Caribbean, Miguel Hakim, and the Foreign Ministers of Peru, Allan Wagner, and Nicaragua, Norman Caldera--deposited instruments of ratification on behalf of their countries.

Secretary General Cesar Gaviria cited the treaty as evidence that the OAS was able to take practical steps to respond to new challenges. "No region has moved as swiftly as we have in the Americas to confront terrorism together, in a coordinated manner," he said at...