UN Secretary General Ban today called for the High-Level Meeting on Nuclear Security and Safety.
The U.S. Senior State Department Official said the meeting is intended to build political support and momentum at the highest levels for international efforts to strengthen nuclear safety and security.
“As you know, the international community has a lot of lessons to learn from the recent Fukushima accident in Japan, which resulted from the tragic earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan. Indeed, we’re still learning lessons from the Chernobyl disaster, which took place over 25 years ago. The most fundamental lesson for our countries is that nuclear accidents can transcend national borders and have international consequences.” – Senior State Department Official
The U.S. Senior State Department Official highlighted that a nuclear accident anywhere affects everybody, and he stressed that it is also important that all states do everything they can to prevent nuclear proliferation and nuclear terrorism because of the global implications and consequences.
“Another critical lesson is the necessity of being prepared for the unexpected, especially when it comes to nuclear matters. The double disaster of an earthquake and a tsunami was hard for many to imagine.” -Senior State Department Official
The Senior State Department Official emphasized that all states with nuclear power must apply the highest standards for nuclear safety. The United States wants to set the gold standard for nuclear safety and that should be the goal of every state.
“It’s everyone’s responsibility to own- of each country’s own regulatory body to ensure that its nuclear facilities meet the highest standards of safety.” – Senior State Department Official
The Senior State Department Official highlighted that the United States remains committed to nuclear power as an important component of its energy needs as well as the world’s.
The Senior State Department Official said the United States cannot take nuclear energy off the table, but it must be safe and secure, which is why the United States continues to reaffirm the importance of strengthening the IAEA.
“This meeting will welcome the IAEA action on nuclear safety, which calls for states to request voluntary peer reviews on a regular basis to facilitate transparency and improve standards of nuclear safety.” – Senior State Department Official
The meeting also highlights the importance of nuclear safety and compliments the Nuclear Security Summit that will be hosted next year by South Korea. The South Korea summit is a follow-on to the Nuclear Security Summit that President Obama hosted in April 2010.
