President Buhari leaves for US nuclear summit today

President Muhammadu Buhari will leave for Washington DC, USA today to join about 60 other world leaders and heads of international organisations at the 4th Nuclear Security Summit which opens there tomorrow. The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, made this known in a statement yesterday. He said Buhari would, at plenary sessions of the summit dedicated to reinforcing international commitment to the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, insist that while Nigeria would continue to sustain that commitment, world powers must respect the right of other countries to the peaceful use of nuclear energy for development purposes. He said the president would reaffirm Nigeria’s stance that international efforts to ensure greater security of nuclear materials should maintain a balance between nuclear non-proliferation obligations and the indisputable right of Nigeria and other countries to harness nuclear energy and technology for socio-economic development. He recalled that the president had earlier in Abuja this month told the Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Yukiya Amano, that the federal government would welcome greater support from the agency for Nigeria’s aspiration to begin the generation of electricity with nuclear energy. Adesina said while in Washington DC, the president and his delegation would also hold bilateral meetings with other heads of government and high-ranking United States officials. Buhari’s delegation includes Governor Mohammed Abubakar of Bauchi State, Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara State, Foreign Affairs Minister Geoffrey Onyeama, National Security Adviser retired Major-General Babagana Monguno and Director-General of Nigeria’s Nuclear Regulatory Agency Professor Lawrence Anikwe Dim. The president is expected back in Abuja on Sunday.