History Atlas

How The Past Is Known
Sign In
Text size
100%
Theme

Switch Atlas

Historical Document

Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance

Also Known As Rio Treaty; Rio Pact; Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance
Modern International Agreements and Pacts

The Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance, commonly called the Rio Treaty, is an intergovernmental collective security agreement the American states adopted on September 2, 1947 at a meeting in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and brought into force on December 3, 1948. Its central principle is that an attack against one signatory is to be treated as an attack against all of them. The treaty began with 23 signatories, and the Bahamas became the most recent country to join, signing and ratifying it in 1982, but several members have since breached or withdrawn from it: Bolivia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, and Venezuela withdrew between 2012 and 2014, Uruguay withdrew briefly in 2019 before reversing course the following year, and Cuba has been suspended from the treaty since 1962.

Facts
Document Type
Intergovernmental collective security agreement 1
Creation Year
1947 1
Origin Place
Rio de Janeiro 1
Original Language
English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish 1
Document Type
Document Type (category)
Agreement 1
FAQs

What does the Rio Treaty require its members to do when one of them is attacked?

An attack on one American State counts as an attack on all of them.

Article 3 of the treaty says that an armed attack by any State against an American State is to be considered an attack against all the American States. Each party therefore undertakes to help meet the attack, in the exercise of the inherent right of individual or collective self-defense recognized by Article 51 of the United Nations Charter. Until the Organ of Consultation of the inter-american system decides what to do, each party may determine the immediate measures it will take individually, if the state or states directly attacked request it.
Connections

In Era

The Contemporary Period, Eras
Source Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases

Used In

English

Also in Language Atlas: which uses this subject.

French

Also in Language Atlas: which uses this subject.

Portuguese

Also in Language Atlas: which uses this subject.

Spanish

Also in Language Atlas: which uses this subject.

Originated In

Rio de Janeiro

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject originated.

Sources
1. Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (Wikipedia)
  • Opening paragraph
    is an intergovernmental collective security agreement signed in 1947
  • Infobox, Signed
    Signed 2 September 1947
  • Infobox, Location
    Location Rio de Janeiro
  • Infobox, Languages
    Languages English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish
  • Opening paragraph, alternative names
    commonly known as the Rio Treaty, the Rio Pact, the Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance
  • In Era: The Contemporary Period, lead paragraph and infobox, date
    The treaty was adopted by the original signatories on 2 September 1947 in Rio de Janeiro (hence the colloquial name "Rio Treaty").
  • In Group: International Agreements and Pacts of the Cold War Era, 1946 to 1989, Lead
    The Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (commonly known as the Rio Treaty, the Rio Pact, the Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance, or by the Spanish-language acronym TIAR from Tratado Interamericano de Asistencia Recíproca) is an intergovernmental collective security agreement signed in 1947 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, at a meeting of the American states.
View the Source
Wikidata: Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance
Wikidata Q1410645, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.