President Park Geun-hye arrived in Washington on Wednesday for a summit with her U.S. counterpart Barack Obama and dozens of other world leaders on how to tackle the threats on nuclear terrorism and to strengthen an international regime for nuclear security.

The biennial meeting, scheduled for Thursday and Friday, has been held every two years since Obama hosted the inaugural summit in 2010 as part of efforts to make the world free of nuclear weapons. This year's meeting is to be the final summit.

The summit will bring together the leaders of more than 50 countries, including China and Japan, as well as the United Nations, the International Atomic Energy Agency and the European Union.

Park is expected to call for international efforts to deal with threats of nuclear terrorism and to make North Korea abandon its nuclear weapons program during a working dinner on Thursday, the first day of the summit.

International efforts to curb North Korea's nuclear ambition have gained further urgency in recent months as Pyongyang carried out its fourth nuclear test on Jan. 6 and a long-range rocket launch on Feb. 7.

The U.N. Security Council has slapped North Korea with tougher sanctions to punish the communist country for its latest provocations.

North Korea has claimed breakthroughs in its missile and nuclear weapons programs in the latest clear sign that the communist country has no intention of giving up its nuclear and missile programs.

South Korea believes the North can conduct a fifth nuclear test at any time. 

On Tuesday, North Korea fired a short-range projectile in the latest show of force against South Korea over its annual military drills with Washington. The North views the drills as a rehearsal for a nuclear war against it.

In Washington, Park is also set to hold talks with Obama on Thursday before the two meet with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the margins of the Nuclear Security Summit.

The trilateral summit is expected to focus on the common responses of the three countries to the threat posed by North Korea.

Park is also scheduled to hold two separate talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Abe on North Korea. Obama is set to meet with Xi on Thursday.

North Korea's nuclear issue is expected to be the key topic of discussion at Park's back-to-back meetings with the leaders. 

The trip also will take Park to Mexico for a summit with President Enrique Pena Nieto next Monday.

The two leaders are expected to discuss a wide range of issues, as well as how to cooperate on the faithful and effective implementation of the U.N. sanctions. (Yonhap)