South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said Monday that the ultimate goal of the upcoming Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul is to obtain a "world without nuclear weapons".

"The purpose (of the summit) ultimately lies in making a world without nuclear weapons by minimizing the amount of nuclear materials in the world and strengthening their management," Lee said during his biweekly radio address.

He added the two-day global event that starts March 26 is expected to encourage participating countries to make concrete pledges on this issue.

Lee said that nuclear materials scattered around the world could yield some 130,000 nuclear weapons, and the summit aims to prevent such materials from falling into the hands of dangerous terrorist groups, reported Xinhua.

"South Korea has firmly and consistently followed non-proliferation principles despite persistent nuclear threats" from North Korea, said Lee, adding that the country also stands as an example in making peaceful use of nuclear energy.

"These factors have been greatly recognized by the international community, thereby resulting in the hosting of the summit."

Lee also said the upcoming summit is expected to seek broader international support for North Korea's denuclearization.

The March 26-27 summit will be the largest international event South Korea has ever hosted. It is expected to draw about 50 world leaders, including US President Barack Obama, Chinese President Hu Jintao and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Obama hosted the first summit in 2010, saying that the world should work together to bolster international safeguards and prevent nuclear terrorism.

Source: Indo-Asia News Service