Pretoria - South Africa will later this week participate in the 2016 Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) to be held in Washington, in the United States.
South Africa’s delegation to the annual summit, which will be held from Thursday, will be led by International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane.
The country’s participation in the NSS process is informed by the shared vision of a world free of weapons of mass destruction - particularly nuclear weapons - as well as its triple objectives of nuclear disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, said the Department of International Relations and Cooperation.
Through the NSS process, participating world leaders forge a common approach to nuclear security to, among other things, deal with the threat posed by nuclear terrorism.
The department said the outcomes of this week’s summit will seek to strengthen the issue of nuclear security.
“South Africa is committed to promoting a multilateral approach to nuclear security which upholds the centrality of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the United Nations, and which respects the international rule of law and the principles enshrined in the UN Charter,” it said.
It is envisaged that the 2016 summit will mark a transition from a dedicated leader-level process to subsequent efforts within the relevant international organisations such as the IAEA. - SAnews.gov.za
