1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, together with the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission and the Korea Institute of Nuclear Nonproliferation and Control (KINAC), hosted a “Regional Workshop on Asia’s Considerations of Nuclear Security” from March 23 to 24 in a hybrid online and offline format. 2. The Workshop participants, with a basic goal in nuclear security, namely preventing nuclear and radiological terrorism, reviewed Asian countries’ concerns, key issues of interest, and priorities regarding nuclear security and discussed ways for cooperation and best practices in resolving challenges to nuclear security in the region. ° In particular, the Workshop was organized through consultation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as well as the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) within the Department of Energy and the Department of State of the United States in order to promote Asian countries’ understanding of the Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (A/CPPNM) ahead of the first A/CPPNM Review Conference to take place in 2022. ° The Korean side shared the plan to hold the Workshop at the meeting of the Korea-U.S. Nuclear Security Working Group in September 2020 and suggested that the U.S. government join the event. Korea and the U.S. cooperated closely since then, ranging from carrying out an advance survey of Asian countries to drawing up the program of the Workshop. 3. In his welcome remarks, Director-General for Nonproliferation and Nuclear Affairs Park Il shared the Korean government’s contribution to strengthening the global nuclear security regime, especially its efforts to support ASEAN’s capability-building in nuclear security since 2018 pursuant to the New Southern Policy. He added that the Korean government will continue efforts to promote such regional cooperation in close consultation with the IAEA. 4. In her congratulatory message, IAEA Director of Nuclear Safety and Security Ms. Elena Buglova, also underscoring the importance of the universalization and the faithful implementation of the CPPNM, a legal framework for nuclear security, extended appreciation to the Korean government for holding the Regional Workshop in Asia at an appropriate time. 5. Dr. Robert Floyd, Director-General of the Australian Safeguards and Non-Proliferation Office, who attended the Workshop in his capacity as chair of the Preparatory Committee for the A/CPPNM Review Conference, shared the progress in the preparation for the Review Conference and called the Workshop an appropriate approach of the region for sharing nuclear security issues and thereby promoting discussions at the Review Conference. 6. The Workshop consisted of sessions on Asia’s nuclear security priorities and response efforts and the international community’s efforts to enhance nuclear security, as well as a panel discussion on such regional specific issues as transportation security and nuclear forensics in Asia, and each of the sessions featured thematic presentations by Korean experts and key speakers from the IAEA and the U.S. NNSA, question-and-answer sessions, and panel discussions among experts from Asian countries. ° Asian countries with nuclear power plants expressed their deepest concerns over cyberterrorism and sabotage against those plants, while Asian countries without such plants did so over terrorism using radioactive materials. They all conveyed deep concern and interest over theft or illicit trafficking as well transportation security of nuclear and radioactive materials, sharing efforts of individual countries and the region to respond to the issue. ° Also shared at the Workshop were the IAEA’s efforts to enhance the global nuclear security regime as well as nuclear security outreach of Korea and the U.S. in Asia. 7. The conclusion reached at the “Regional Workshop on Asia’s Considerations of Nuclear Security” will be used in analyzing features of nuclear security in Asia at the A/CPPNM Review Conference in 2022, thereby contributing to the review of the relevance of the A/CPPNM. Source
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