Nuclear summit involving Arab states focuses on proliferation

(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) WASHINGTON March 31 (KUNA) -- The threat of nuclear terrorism will top the agenda at the 4th Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) in Washington where more than 50 foreign delegations will convene meetings on Thursday and Friday in a bid to secure current stockpiles of nuclear weapons and promote nonproliferation.

The summit is being hosted by President Barack Obama for the second time following its debut in 2010. South Korea hosted the 2012 meetings and The Hague hosted in 2014. The initiative is a personal one for Obama which began when he delivered a landmark speech in Prague in 2009 where he called nuclear terrorism "the most immediate and extreme threat to global security." Some 2000 metric tons of highly enriched uranium and plutonium are in use in military and civilian facilities around the world Laura Holgate Special Assistant to Obama and Senior Director for Weapons of Mass Destruction Terrorism and Threat Reduction told reporters this week. "We know that terrorists have the intent and the capability to turn these raw materials into a nuclear device if they were to gain access to them. What we did not know in 2009 was the rise of ISIL and its WMD ambitions" she said referring to an acronym for the so-called Islamic State group and its reported chemical weapons attacks in Iraq and Syria. While there is no indication at this point that the IS has any nuclear capability Holgate admitted they may still be able to launch a "disruptive" radiological weapon which would result in increased cancer rates among the populace and a massive cleanup effort. "A terrorist attack with an improvised nuclear device would create political economic social psychological and environmental havoc around the world no matter where such an attack occurs" she added. "The threat is global the impact of a nuclear terrorist attack would be global and the solutions must therefore also be global." Since 2010 24 countries have begun developing nuclear security-related "Centers of Excellence" - such as the one that opened in Beijing last week - and radiation detection equipment has been installed at more than 300 international border crossings airports and seaports according to the Department of State. Up to 0260 national commitments have also been made and 75 percent of them have already been implemented Senior Adviser to the President Ben Rhodes told reporters in a press call. They include converting reactors upgrading technology strengthening regulation and enhancing multilateral capabilities for nuclear security. "The purpose of the summit is not to name and shame [but] it's a place to create peer pressure" Holgate said.

The NSS she added aims to have "representative discussions" which can then be fleshed out and implemented throughout the year by working groups from various nations. The participating Arab delegations include Saudi Arabia headed by Dr. Hashim A. Yamani President of King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy; the United Arab Emirates headed by Foreign Minister Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan; Algeria headed by Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal; Egypt led by Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry; Jordan headed by King Abdullah; and Morocco headed by Prince Moulay Rachid. Also from the region Dr. Yuval Steinitz Israeli Minister of National Infrastructures Energy and Water Resources is attending as well as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Vice President Joseph Biden who has formed a relationship with Erdogan will be meeting with him one-on-one Rhodes confirmed. Rose Gottemoeller who advises Secretary of State John Kerry on arms control said the US is "very keen" on working with Israel and Egypt in particular to establish a "weapons-of-mass-destruction-free zone" in the Middle East an effort which has not succeeded in the past due to "many disparate interests in the region" she said. Iran which was considered a major nuclear threat in 2009 but has since signed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with the P5+1 was not invited and has never been represented at the summits Gottemoeller confirmed.

The nuclear deal with Tehran however represents the success diplomacy can have toward locking up HEU (highly enriched uranium) and converting its use in research facilities to low enriched uranium (LEU) Deputy Secretary of Energy Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall told reporters.

Obama will be meeting with a delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Thursday to assess Iran's progress on meeting its JCPOA commitments Rhodes said.

The other state still considered a major nuclear threat is North Korea and Obama will be meeting with the leaders of Japan South Korea and China on the issue ahead of the official summit proceedings which begin on Friday he added. While China has not taken enough action to curb North Korea's provocations Rhodes said Holgate noted the US is "pleased" with Beijing's "leadership" in promoting nuclear security in general. Russia which is the only country that has more nuclear weapons than the US has declined to attend the summit.

"We scratch our heads" as to why Moscow is not sending a delegation Gottemoeller said. Despite the "severe crisis" of 2014 in Ukraine that caused a widening rift between the US and Russia she lauded the country's effort toward removing chemical weapons from Syria in 2014 and securing the Iran nuclear deal in 2015. Speaking at the Wilson Center think tank Wednesday Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control Verification and Compliance Frank Rose said Russia only ever signed the 2010 START treaty "to maintain strategic parity with the United States" thanks to the verification process outlined in the deal.

The New START or Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty aimed to reduce the number of long-range nuclear missiles by half. "They never bought into that vision for further reductions" he said but expects that "at some point" Russia will come to the table for further nuclear talks with the US. (end) ys.rk