The meeting, which will be held over two days in Rio de Janeiro, will gather representatives of the South Atlantic coastal nations in a diplomatic space founded in 1986 under the auspices of the United Nations to preserve the region free of nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction.

The host nation will succeed Cape Verde as head of ZOPACAS for two to three years, in accordance with the mechanism’s practice over its four decades of existence, Agencia Brasil stated.

In addition to reaffirming the peaceful nature of the South Atlantic, the Brazilian presidency will seek to boost cooperation among member countries, an aspect that, according to the Brazilian Foreign Ministry, has not yet reached its full potential.

The Foreign Ministry’s authorities noted that the ministerial meeting is expected to result in the adoption of three key documents: a convention on the marine environment, a cooperation strategy covering several thematic areas, and the Rio de Janeiro Declaration, a political document.

Carlos Marcio Bicalho Cozendey, Secretary of Multilateral Political Affairs at the Foreign Ministry, underscored in statements to the press that ZOPACAS has maintained a consensus for 40 years on the need to preserve the region as a zone free of weapons of mass destruction.

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