IAEA calls nuclear safety summit

The UN atomic energy chief called a Vienna summit to tackle mounting concerns about nuclear safety, saying on Monday the international community needed a co-ordinated response in the wake of Japan's crisis. Japan is struggling to avert a severe meltdown at its Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant and officials said highly radioactive water had been leaking from the site hit by an earthquake and tsunami on March 11.
The disaster has prompted a rethink of nuclear power around the world, just as the technology was starting to regain momentum as a tool to fight global warming. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which promotes peaceful uses of nuclear energy, would host the meeting, possibly in June, Director-General Yukiya Amano said.
He said ministers from 151 IAEA member states should attend. "(The) political level is needed, this is a very important issue, this is not only for experts or technical people," he told a news conference.