Brussels, 26/03/2012 (Agence Europe) - Two years after the Washington meeting, the Second Nuclear Security Summit is bringing together high level representatives of 53 states, the United Nations and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), with the aim of restating, at the highest level, the commitment to making nuclear materials and installations as safe as possible and against nuclear terrorism. For the EU, Herman Van Rompuy argued for a “global (nuclear) security culture”.
Confirming the 2010 commitment. Without exception, all the main leaders of the planet accepted the invitation from South Korean President Lee Myung-bak. US President Barack Obama, Chinese President Hu Jintao, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and, for the EU, Council President Herman Van Rompuy and Commission President José Manuel Barroso - French Prime Minister François Fillon and his UK counterpart David Cameron have also travelled to Seoul - will be in the South Korean capital until Tuesday to restate the commitments made in 2010 for greater international cooperation on nuclear security. At the summit, a non-binding statement is expected to be adopted, mentioning commitments to reduce the use of highly enriched uranium and plutonium, and enhancing how this use is managed. Increased support for the IAEA will also be included. One year on from the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi power station, in March 2011, tightening up security measures in nuclear installations was also on the Seoul summit agenda.
Sights trained on North Korea. Though not officially on the agenda, North Korea, just like Iran, was the subject of great discussion off-stage in bilateral meetings. After concluding an agreement with the Untied States in February declaring a moratorium on its nuclear activities, North Korea has unleashed a wave of indignation in the region with its announcement in mid-March that it planned to launch a rocket carrying an earth observation satellite sometime in the middle of next month. Pyongyang claims that the launch is for purely peaceful purposes, marking the centenary of Kim Il Sung, the founder of the current North Korean regime, but it is seen by the US, South Korea and Japan as serious provocation. These three countries believe that the launch of the North Korean is merely a cover for testing a long-distance ballistic missile, in violation of UN Security Council Regulation 1874, adopted in 2009, which bans North Korea from launching any ballistic missiles. South Korea warned on Monday that it would shoot down the North Korean rocket if it encroached on South Korean air space, and Japan said that it was going to deploy its anti-missile systems. On Monday, Presidents Lee and Obama, who travelled to the demilitarised zone separating the two Koreas, called on the North to end the provocation. Lee was due to meet Hu and Medvedev during the course of the day.
Vann Rompuy backs “global nuclear safety culture”. Restating that “the EU is committed to achieving the highest level of nuclear security”, Council President Herman Van Rompuy told the summit on Monday that he “would like to see a global security culture emerging, with the understanding that, ultimately, it is the responsibility of every state to maintain effective nuclear security”. He called for “more intense national efforts and international cooperation” to counter the threat of nuclear terrorism. Van Rompuy also hailed the commitments undertaken in Seoul on the “minimisation and even eventual elimination of highly enriched uranium for civilian use”. He pointed out that it is the EU's intention to convert the few remaining reactors fuelled by enriched uranium by the end of this decade, depending on technical and economic feasibility.
EU very active at global level. Van Rompuy highlighted the efforts undertaken by the EU to contribute to global nuclear security. The EU is working both domestically, with implementation of its action plan on weapons of mass destruction to strengthen chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) security, and internationally, where it advocates universal adherence to international treaties, promotes stringent national export controls and underlines the need to combat illicit trafficking, and continues close cooperation with its partners while looking for new cooperation possibilities with other interested countries, Van Rompuy said, stressing the leading role of the IAEA in international nuclear security cooperation. In addition to its funding to the IAEA's Nuclear Security Fund which has helped more than 100 countries around the world, the EU has a wide range of programmes which help improve security standards globally, such as its latest initiative, its CBRN Centres of Excellence, and makes a significant contribution, €1 billion since 2002, to the G8 Global Partnership Programme. (EH/transl.rt)