VP Binay Attends 2nd Nuclear Security Summit In Korea

Vice President Jejomar C. Binay left this week for South Korea to represent President Benigno S. Aquino III in the 2nd Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul.

In his departure statement, the Vice President said the 2nd Nuclear Security Summit would present the Philippines with an opportunity to learn and promote wide awareness and understanding of nuclear security.

“We shall be discussing nuclear disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation, and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy,” Binay said.

“We shall be exploring various ways of enhancing global nuclear security and safety, in the face of the continuing spread of nuclear weapons and radioactive materials around the world, and the nuclear disaster during last year’s earthquake-tsunami in Fukushima, Japan,” he added.

The conference will be attended by the U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, United States president Barack Obama and more than fifty heads of state and government from around the world.

“Unknown to many of our countrymen, our government has been a vigorous participant in setting up the legal framework for our global nuclear security,” Binay pointed out.

“The Philippines sits in the drafting committee of the conference, and has been active in all the various stages leading to this summit,” he added.

According to Binay, his visit will also allow him to meet with key Korean government officials since the summit coincides with the bilateral celebration of the 63rd anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and the Republic of Korea.

“While in Seoul, I will also be meeting with the Filipino community in my capacity as presidential adviser on Overseas Filipino Workers concerns, chairman of HUDCC, and chairman emeritus of the Inter-Agency Committee Against Trafficking (IACAT),” he said.

“This is an important mission for the president, our country and our people. For the safety and success of our delegation, I implore your unfailing prayers,” Binay requested.

The Philippine government is a signatory to the Convention On The Physical Protection Of Nuclear Materials (CPPNM), one of the 13 counter-terrorism instruments in force and the only internationally legally binding undertaking in the area of physical protection of nuclear materials used for peaceful purposes.

It is also a signatory to the International Con-vention on the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism (ICSANT), which was adopted under the auspices of the United Nations.

In 2010, the Philippines’ permanent representative to the U.N., Ambassador Libran Cabactulan, chaired the review of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty in the U.N. The review conference adopted by consensus a historic and comprehensive final outcome document containing 64 action points promoting the three pillars of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, namely, nuclear disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation, and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. /MP