ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author focuses on his recollections of some activities associated with the Atoms for Peace program in Latin America, and their impact on the development of nuclear energy in the region. He analyses research in nuclear energy stimulated in Latin America by the Atoms for Peace program. The first two research reactors in Latin America entered into operation in 1959, and eventually research reactors were constructed in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, and Uruguay, although not all of them were built as a direct result of the Atoms for Peace program. Nuclear energy technology has reached a substantial level of development in only five Latin American countries, particularly in Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico. It is interesting to note that some Latin American countries have provided important assistance in the development of nuclear programs in other countries, as in the cases of Brazil and Paraguay and Argentina and Peru.
