Leaders Adopt Seoul Communique On Nuclear Security

From R. Ravichandran SEOUL, March 28 (Bernama) -- Fifty three leaders including Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin adopted the Seoul Communique at the end of their two-day 2012 Nuclear Security Summit here where discussions about the threat of nuclear terrorism took a centre stage. "Nuclear terrorism has been acknowledged as a threat to human life," Muhyiddin told Malaysian reporters at the end of the summit here. Other aspects of the communique included the fundamental responsibility of states to maintain security of nuclear materials through effective legislative and regulatory framework. The leaders also reiterated the importance of securing highly enriched uranium and separated plutonium, saying that these materials require special precautions. Carrying the theme "Beyond Security, Towards Peace", the two-day summit at the Convention and Exhibition Centre was attended by 53 world leaders, including United States President Barack Obama and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. Muhyiddin said the communique also acknowledged the role of existing international architecture to address nuclear security, namely the Convention on Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism and the Convention on Physical Protection of Nuclear Materials. The central role of the IAEA was also one of the elements in the communique, Muhyiddin said. "Nearly all heads of governments spoke on the importance of IAEA and how it can be strengthened to better manage nuclear safety issue," he said, adding that the summit also acknowledged the importance of international cooperation to prevent illicit trafficking of nuclear materials. Muhyiddin also congratulated South Korean President Lee Myung-bak for the successful hosting of the summit, which is a follow up to the inaugural summit in Washington in 2010. To a question whether Malaysia was willing to host the summit in the future, Muhyiddin said, "We'll consider if there is an opportunity for that." The next summit will be held in the Netherlands in 2014. -- BERNAMA