The Netherlands has accepted Seoul’s request to host the 3rd Nuclear Security Summit in 2014.
In a January 31 (local time) statement, its Foreign Ministry said,” The Dutch government regards the request as a sign of trust and has responded positively. The chairmanship will be officially transferred at the 2012 Summit in Seoul in March.”
Yonhap News cited (Korean language) similar comments made by Dutch Foreign Minister Uri Rosenthal who, while submitting a report to parliament, said that “the (Dutch) government regards South Korea’s request as an expression of confidence based on the Netherlands’ contributions to nuclear nonproliferation efforts this year.”
An official announcement is expected in late March during the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit, as was case after the first 2010 Washington Summit.
At the 2010 Summit in Washington, Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende had argued for a new international court or tribunal to investigate countries that provide nuclear material to terrorists, claiming the Hague would be the ideal site.
