Area to be covered by the Zone

The actual area which it is proposed such a zone would cover embraces more than one-eighth of the world's surface. It would be bounded by four other zones subject to some form of nuclear arms limitation.

• To the east would lie the Latin American nuclear weapon free zone established by the Treaty of Tlatelolco in 1967. This Treaty is not yet fully operative, but the USA, Britain, France and China have promised to respect the zones ban on nuclear weaponry. Only the Soviet Union among the nuclear powers has refused to sign despite an appeal to do so by the UN General Assembly.
• To the south lies Antarctica, which has been a nuclear free zone since the Antarctica Treaty was signed in 1959. This Treaty bans all measures of a military nature, all nuclear explosions, and the dumping of radioactive waste in Antarctica. The U.S. is currently attmpting to weaken this treaty by having the ban on radioactive waste dumping removed, but in general, the Antarctica Treaty has been respected because there is little military reason for violating it.
• To the west lies the proposed Indian Ocean zone of peace originally suggested by Sri Lanka in 1971 and subsequently endorsed by the UN General Assembly.
• To the northwest lies the Asean nations - Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines who have been proposing the establishment of a "zone of peace, freedom and neutrality."