President Lee Myung-bak speaks during a press conference at the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, Tuesday. South Korea and the United States have agreed to begin revising a pact on the use of nuclear energy.
/ Korea Times Photo
by Sohn Yong-seok |
By Na Jeong-ju
Staff Reporter
South Korea and the United States have agreed to begin negotiations to revise a bilateral pact on the use of nuclear energy as early as possible, South Korean officials said Wednesday.
The nuclear accord, signed in 1974 and set to expire in 2014, requires South Korea to get consent from the United States to reprocess spent nuclear fuel as a measure against its possible use for military purposes.
Seoul has demanded a renegotiation as the country's storage facilities for spent fuel are expected to reach capacity in 2016.
"On the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington D.C., the two allies held working-level talks to discuss a revision of the nuclear pact," a South Korean official said on condition of anonymity.
"Both sides agreed in principle to renew the accord as early as possible. The negotiations may begin in a few weeks."
The agreement reflects Washington's confidence in Seoul's commitment to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to form closer bilateral ties on tackling nuclear terrorism, the official said.
At the 47-nation summit in Washington, which ended Tuesday, South Korea was unanimously chosen to host the next nuclear summit in 2012.
Officials here indicated that dealing with the nuclear threats of North Korea and Iran, and establishing binding measures against terrorist groups will be high on the agenda at the 2012 meeting.
President Lee Myung-bak said in Washington that he was willing to invite North Korea to the next nuclear summit if it promises to abandon its nuclear ambitions. He returned to Korea, Wednesday.
The country is seeking to complete the revisions of the pact with the U.S. by 2012 and secure the right to reprocess spent fuel in an effort to address growing energy needs here.
The revision, however, could be an extremely sensitive issue and draw international protests because spent fuel and enriched uranium can be used to produce nuclear bombs.
According to the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, the nation uses 4,000 tons of uranium annually to operate 20 commercial reactors nationwide. They supply almost 40 percent of Korea's electricity.
Researchers say once South Korea is allowed to reprocess, about 95 percent of spent fuel can be recycled as an energy source and only 5 percent will become waste.
The revision is also vital for South Korea to further prepare for stiff competition with France, Japan and other nations to secure lucrative overseas deals to construct nuclear power plants.
Last year, a consortium led by the state-owned Korea Electric Power Corp. won a $20 billion contract to build four nuclear reactors in the United Arab Emirates, the biggest single contract the country has ever won abroad.
The country is seeking to become a major exporter of commercial reactors amid forecasts that the global demand for nuclear energy will grow continuously.
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yistory@koreatimes.co.kr
