The US President said on Sunday that “the single biggest threat to US security, short-term, medium-term and long-term, would be the possibility of a terrorist organisation obtaining a nuclear weapon”. “This could change the security landscape of the United States and around the world for years to come,” he said.
With 47 countries attending, the gathering at the Walter E. Washington Convention Centre is viewed as one of the largest gatherings of its kind in the US capital since the 1940s.
The two-day summit of world leaders is a follow-up to what the US President had promised last year in Prague. It is expected to mark Mr Obama’s arms control initiatives. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will address the summit on Tuesday.
Sources here said that as the summit kicks off on Monday, the United States is also negotiating with four other permanent members of the UN Security Council on pronounce tougher sanctions against Iran over its reported nuclear ambitions.
The summit participants include Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, the Republic of Korea, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Switzerland, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Turkey, the UAE, the UK, Ukraine and Vietnam. Moreover, the UN, the EU and the IAEA will be represented at the summit. Iran, North Korea and Syria have not been invited.
In some circles it is felt that mere resolutions and rhetoric would not be enough and that there was a need to come up with deadlines, set up groups and continue the process of holding meetings.
As for India, it was claimed that the nation has “endorsed the International Convention on Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism of 2005, which establishes the legal framework to investigate and prosecute acts of nuclear terrorism.
Age Correspondent