An international gathering of nuclear experts and government officials kicked off in South Korea on Monday, providing related parties an opportunity to discuss how to better control the exports of materials and parts that can be used to develop nuclear weapons, the foreign ministry said.

The Nuclear Suppliers Group meeting opened in Seoul earlier in the day, with about 300 participants from 48 member countries expected to be in attendance during its five-day run, according to the ministry. Its plenary session will be held on Thursday.

Launched in 1978, the NSG is a group of nuclear supplier countries that seeks to contribute to the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons through the implementation of strict guidelines for nuclear materials trade.

The NSG is regarded as one of four major groups that cooperate in controlling the trade of nuclear exports. South Korea joined the NSG back in 1996, and is now serving as the chair of the group for one year until 2017.

This year's meeting, mostly to be held behind closed doors, draws attention as the international community has been intensifying its pressure on North Korea to give up its nuclear ambitions following its fourth nuclear test and long-range missile launches earlier this year. In early March, the United Nations Security Council adopted the toughest-ever sanctions on Pyongyang.

Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se is set to deliver a speech on Thursday, which is expected to be focused on emphasizing the importance of fully implementing the latest resolution and urging member countries to double efforts to "tighten the noose" on the North to prevent it from getting its hands on nuclear materials, the ministry said.

"It is expected that the participants will likely deal not just with the issue of blocking the North from nuclear supply channels but also discuss ways to beef up the overall NSG regime by expanding exchanges of information and updating its control lists," the ministry said. (Yonhap)