2012 Nuclear Security Summit

2012 Nuclear Security Summit
Host country	South Korea
Date	March 26–27, 2012
Venue(s)	COEX Convention & Exhibition Center
Cities	Seoul
Participants	58 representatives
Follows	2010 Nuclear Security Summit
Precedes	2014 Nuclear Security Summit
Website	thenuclearsecuritysummit.org

The 2012 Nuclear Security Summit was a summit held at the COEX Convention & Exhibition Center in Seoul, South Korea,^[1] on March 26 and 27, 2012.^[2] It was the second time the conference was held after the 2010 Nuclear Security Summit.

The summit series discusses international cooperative measures to protect nuclear materials and facilities from terrorist groups. Fifty-eight world leaders from 53 states and four international organizations, including the United Nations, International Atomic Energy Agency, the European Union and INTERPOL, participated. The main issues discussed were:^[3]

• Cooperative measures to combat the threat of nuclear terrorism
• Protection of nuclear materials and related facilities
• Prevention of illicit trafficking of nuclear materials

At the summit, the leaders discussed nuclear terrorism threats and nuclear security preparedness. They also reviewed the implementation of agreements and voluntary commitments. Then the leaders focused on major nuclear security issues, mostly brought up at the Washington summit, such as the minimization and management of highly enriched uranium, ratification of nuclear security conventions, strengthening information and transportation security, IAEA’s role, preventing illicit nuclear trafficking, nuclear security culture, and international cooperation and assistance.

In the aftermath of the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, Korea added a new issues of radiological security and the nuclear security-safety interface to the agenda from the natural disasters since World War II (1939-45) and Korean War (1950-53). The Washington summit had focused on nuclear terrorism with explosive nuclear devices, perceiving that as the biggest threat to international security after 9/11 attacks in New York City in 2001, 3/11 train bombings in Madrid in 2004, and 7/7 bombings in London in 2005. The 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security summit also discussed protection against dirty bombs and the sabotage of nuclear facilities.

Some states opposed the two new items, saying that they would dilute the focus of the summit.^[4]