Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung left Hanoi on March 26 to attend the second Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul and pay an official visit to the Republic of Korea at the invitation of President Lee Myung-bak.

 The March 26-27 summit, which is attended by leaders from more than 50 countries, takes place at a time when there is growing concern about nuclear safety and security following the Fukushima nuclear crisis in Japan a year ago.

It offers a chance for the participating countries to examine the implementation of commitments made at the first summit in the US in 2010 and to discuss measures to promote nuclear safety and security in the new context.

It creates a forum for them to reconfirm political commitments to ensuring nuclear safety and security, foster the use of nuclear power for peaceful purposes, and discuss the operational mechanism of the Nuclear Security Summit.

The meeting also provides a chance for developing countries to increase international cooperation and apply advanced technology to the peaceful use of nuclear power.

By participating in the summit, Vietnam wants to demonstrate its consistent policy of using nuclear power for peaceful purposes and promote its efforts in ensuring nuclear safety and security in order to build up the international community’s trust and make full use of cooperation and assistance from other countries.

Vietnam has been making every effort in fulfilling political commitments since the first summit in 2010. It is considering admission to international treaties and/or mechanisms on nuclear safety and security, and boosting cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and other countries in using nuclear power for peaceful purposes.

The country is cooperating with Russia and the US in using low enriched uranium fuel for its future nuclear power plants. The move has received appreciation from the international community.

Prime Minister Dung is scheduled to deliver a speech at the plenary session and meet with Government and State leaders of the participating countries to exchange views on the peaceful use of nuclear power.

The summit is expected to adopt a statement showing the participating countries’ high resolve to face nuclear terrorist threats, reconfirm the IAEA’s role, heighten the need for international cooperation and assistance, and promote the countries’ right to develop nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

After the summit, PM Dung will make an official visit to the RoK from March 27-29 to strengthen friendship, mutual understanding and trust between Vietnam and the RoK.

The visits demonstrates Vietnam’s desire to foster the strategic partnership with the RoK, especially bilateral cooperation in economics, trade, investment, technology transfer, education-training, and labour.

This is Mr Dung’s third visit to the RoK and the first political event in the Vietnam-RoK Friendship Year 2012 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties. 

The RoK is Vietnam’s fourth largest trade partner, with two-way trade last year reaching nearly US$17.9 billion, an increase of 39 percent against 2010. Both countries are striving to raise bilateral trade to US$20 billion in 2015.

The RoK is also one of Vietnam’s biggest foreign investors, pouring a total of approximately US$23 billion into projects in the country.

The RoK is the second largest provider of official development assistance (ODA) to Vietnam after Japan. In 2011 it considered the Southeast Asian nation a model in ODA provision, focusing on green growth, human resources training and infrastructure construction.

 (VOVNEWS)