By Na Jeong-ju
Staff Reporter
South Korea was named Tuesday to host the next premier global forum on nuclear non-proliferation, which is expected to take place in the first half of 2012.
The country gained unanimous support as host for the next Nuclear Security Summit from the leaders of 47 nations taking part in the inaugural meeting in Washington D.C.
Initiated by U.S. President Barack Obama, the summit seeks closer global cooperation on reducing nuclear warheads worldwide and preventing nuclear terrorism.
``It's another diplomatic breakthrough for South Korea" following the country's winning last September of the right to host the G-20 Summit in November, President Lee Myung-bak said during a press conference in Washington.
``What's urgent now for us is to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula and promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy worldwide. I will work closely with the international community to attain these goals.''
Cheong Wa Dae officials said North Korea could be invited to the nuclear summit in 2012.
``There is no reason for us to block the North's participation in discussions,'' said Lee Dong-kwan, senior presidential secretary for public relations.
``As long as it shows a willingness and sincerity to abandon its nuclear program and join in our efforts to make a world without nuclear weapons, we will help.''
President Lee has previously said South Korea will help North Korea feed its people and modernize its economy if it cancels its nuclear weapons program.
Last year, he proposed a ``Grand Bargain'' initiative aimed at guaranteeing the North's security and economic assistance from the five other countries participating in the six-party denuclearization talks in exchange for the communist state's ending of its nuclear ambitions.
The North Korean nuclear issue is expected to top the agenda of the 2012 summit, which Seoul officials say may draw the leaders of more than 50 nations and deal with a broader spectrum of non-proliferation issues than in Washington.
``In South Korea, we hope the countries will produce some binding solutions to keep nuclear weapons from terrorist groups,'' a foreign ministry official said on condition of anonymity.
``The summit may focus on more effective countermeasures against threatening countries like North Korea and Iran.''
In an interview with The Washington Post published Monday, President Lee said he didn't think North Korea would abandon its nuclear program voluntarily.
``That's why the international community must collaborate on the issue. We need stronger and more effective measures against the North,'' he said.
Also on the agenda at the 2012 summit will likely be international collaboration for the peaceful use of nuclear energy, according to officials.
During a session in Washington, Tuesday, Lee stressed that Korea has localized over 95 percent of the technologies needed to build and operate nuclear power plants.
Since Korea constructed its first commercial nuclear plant in 1978, it has built 20 reactors nationwide, without even a single case of a serious accident being reported, he said.
Last year, Seoul won a $20 billion contract to build nuclear power plants in the United Arab Emirates, paving the way for the country to become a major nuclear facility exporter.