“From Promise to Action”: Seoul summit will be continued also tomorrow

Leaders from 53 states and four international organizations gathered for a Working Dinner on March 26, 18:30-20:00, the first official program of the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit. The Leaders shared and assessed the progress that has been made in the field of nuclear security since the 2010 Washington Summit. Official web-site of the summit informs about this.

The Working Dinner was attended only by the Leaders, where they freely shared ideas in an interactive discussion on national actions taken on the measures specified in the Washington Communique and the Work Plan, as well as individual commitments taken. They include actions in eliminating and minimizing nuclear materials; joining and ratifying nuclear security-related international instruments; establishing Centers of Excellence; and supporting the activities of relevant international initiatives.

The results of the Working Dinner revealed that there had been substantial progress since 2010 both on the Washington Work Plan and the individual commitments made by participating states, effectively demonstrating that the Nuclear Security Summit process is indeed contributing to strengthening nuclear security based on a shared understanding of the danger of the threat of nuclear terrorism.

The Republic of Korea introduced actions it has taken, including the hosting of the 2011 Plenary Meeting of the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism; winning the approval of the National Assembly in December 2011 on the ratification of key nuclear security-related conventions; beginning construction on a Center of Excellence in March 2012; and the establishment of a Nuclear Safety and Security Commission, an independent presidential agency.

President Lee recognized the efforts made by participating states over the last two years, and proposed to discuss measures to further develop the global nuclear security architecture based on achievements made so far at the Summit session the following day.

The morning session on March 27 will bring Leaders to share ideas on the topic of “national measures and international cooperation to enhance nuclear security, including future commitments.”