China and the United States will meet later this month at the 2016 Nuclear Security Summit in Washington to further deepen their nuclear security cooperation in halting global nuclear smuggling.

US Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said Thursday that the two nations share a mutual interest in preventing the smuggling of nuclear materials and have collaborated in coming up with tangible steps in combatting the global threat.

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Moniz  told reporters in Beijing that Chinese President Xi Jinping has confirmed his attendance in the summit slated on March 31 to April 1.

Agreement

The energy czar said that the agency has signed an agreement wherein established programs will be broadened to help and train China to detect the entry and exit of nuclear materials in its territory.

The agreement, Moniz said,  focuses on providing training and technology to China to detect 'illicit movements, smuggling of nuclear materials and logical sources.'

"My discussions up until now have certainly reinforced the importance of those relationships and the shared interest in extending them going forward," Moniz said.

Center of Excellence on Nuclear Security

Moniz said China has set up a new Center of Excellence on Nuclear Security near Beijing which is funded jointly by the two nations. The Center houses a collection of test sites, labs and training facilities and are partly built on US installations.

The center aims to detect earlier the smuggling of nuclear materials in China which can be used in making nuclear weapons and bombs by terrorists.

For the long term, the center seeks to provide training for detection experts from countries in the region. But for now, Moniz said the priority is to build China's capabilities.

Serious threat

The energy chief said the US has already trained China's customs agency to detect incoming and outgoing illicit  nuclear materials in the past years.

"Controlling those materials, whether going out or coming in, is clearly important," Moniz said.

Moniz added that the US and China are under serious threat following the recent reports about the Islamic State, ISIS, working to find raw materials for the development of nuclear weapons.

TagsErnest Moniz, Nuclear Security Summit, China-US nuclear security cooperation, Washington, President Xi Jinping, global nuclear smuggling, global threat, Center of Excellence on Nuclear Security, china