Secretary Gates: Summit draws attention to nuclear security Published April 13, 2010 By John J. Kruzel American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- The opening of the two-day Nuclear Security Summit that convenes leaders of more than 40 countries April 12 through 13 here comes on the heels of the unveiling of the Nuclear Posture Review, a Defense Department-led effort that represents the first overarching look at U.S. nuclear strategy since the end of the Cold War. The international summit on nuclear security is an opportunity to draw greater attention to the issues of nuclear nonproliferation and the control of nuclear material, said Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates. "One of the things that makes the nuclear posture review different than its predecessors is the priority that it has given to preventing nuclear proliferation and getting better control of nuclear materials around the world," Secretary Gates said. "And that is precisely the agenda for the nuclear security conference." Secretary Gates said the summit places emphasis on putting into practice relevant nuclear agreements that have already been forged, and seeking new ways improve nuclear security. "It is an area that people talk about a lot, but frankly, there hasn't been the kind of concerted international attention in these two areas that there might have been," he said. "So I think it creates some real opportunities." Appearing alongside Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on CBS' "Face the Nation" April 11, Secretary Gates called it an "extraordinary achievement" to bring together 46 world leaders to discuss nuclear security issues. Secretary Clinton said the goal of the summit would be to gain broader agreement on nuclear security issues in hopes of making nuclear materials less vulnerable to theft or misuse. "We are seeking to get agreement and a work plan about how each country will do its best to better secure the nuclear material that it has within its borders to prevent the transit of nuclear material," she said. Secretary Gates added that issues of nonproliferation and of gaining control of nuclear materials around the world represent the "key front-end piece" of the Nuclear Posture Review. The review articulates a roadmap for cutting the American nuclear arsenal, edging the country toward President Barack Obama's long-term goal of a world free of nuclear weapons and ceases U.S. testing of nuclear weapons and the development of new nuclear weapons platforms. It culminates a year of efforts involving top interagency officials, and it codifies the new U.S. nuclear stance, that includes a policy not to use nuclear weapons against a non-nuclear state, even if the state attacks with chemical and biological weapons.