Organization of American States
Organization of American States
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| Motto: "Democracy for peace, security and development" | |||||||||
The OAS as of 2022 Member states Disputed member state Former member states | |||||||||
| Headquarters | 17th Street and Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, D.C., U.S. 38°53′34″N 77°02′25″W / 38.8929138°N 77.0403734°W | ||||||||
| Largest Metropolis | São Paulo | ||||||||
| Official languages | English French Portuguese Spanish | ||||||||
| Member states |
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| Leaders | |||||||||
| Albert Ramdin | |||||||||
• Assistant Secretary General | Laura Gil Savastano | ||||||||
| Establishment | |||||||||
• Charter | 30 April 1948 | ||||||||
| Area | |||||||||
• Total | 40,275,678 km2 (15,550,526 sq mi) | ||||||||
| Population | |||||||||
• 2023 estimate | 1,028,404,247 | ||||||||
| Time zone | UTC−10 to +0 | ||||||||
Website oas.org | |||||||||
The Organization of American States (OAS or OEA; Spanish: Organización de los Estados Americanos; Portuguese: Organização dos Estados Americanos; French: Organisation des États américains) is an international organization founded on 30 April 1948 to promote cooperation among its member states within the Americas.
Headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, the OAS is a "multilateral regional body focused on human rights, electoral oversight, social and economic development, and security in the Western Hemisphere", according to the Council on Foreign Relations. As of November 2023, 32 states in the Americas are OAS members.
Albert Ramdin of Suriname was inaugurated as OAS secretary general in May 2025, replacing Luis Almagro of Uruguay.