‘Seoul summit could signal N.K. to give up nuclear ambitions’

Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan said the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit slated for March 26-27 could signal North Korea to give up its nuclear armament ambitions.

“The Seoul Nuclear Security Summit seeks the minimum use of nuclear materials such as highly-enriched uranium and plutonium. Thus, it could deliver a message to North Korea that it should give up such materials,” Kim told reporters in Seoul.

However, he made it clear that the North Korean nuclear issue is not an official main agenda of the upcoming summit.

“The nuclear security summit will not only contribute to world peace through the prevention of nuclear terrorism, but serve as an important first step towards a world without nuclear weapons,” Kim said.

The nuclear security summit to be held at COEX in southern Seoul will gather 43 leaders from 53 participating countries, including U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda expressed his intention to attend the summit, but his schedule has not been confirmed yet, Kim noted.

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak is to hold bilateral summits with his counterparts from more than 15 countries, according to the Foreign Ministry.

When asked about the possibility of participation by North Korea’s young leader Kim Jong-un, the top foreign policy maker said it is unlikely.

Although President Lee had invited then North Korean leader Kim Jong-il to the summit last year on the condition that Pyongyang should “keep its promise with the international community,” time is running short to invite the young leader, Kim said.

While the 2010 Washington Communique broadly presented shared goals to strengthen global nuclear security and remove the threat of nuclear terrorism, the 2012 Seoul Communique is expected to focus more on safely securing nuclear materials, such as highly enriched uranium, or HEU, plutonium and radioactive materials which can be used to make so-called “dirty bombs,” according to summit organizers.

By Kim Yoon-mi (yoonmi@heraldcorp.com)