SEOUL - China has always exercised rigorous control on nuclear material, a senior Chinese official said here during a briefing shortly after the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit on Tuesday.

Miao Wei, minister of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) of China, said China has always exercised rigorous control on nuclear materials and has gradually put in place satisfactory and effective administrative measures.

Answering a question from Xinhua, he said, "China passed a licensing theme of the management of nuclear material," adding that "illegal manufacturing, trading and transporting radioactive substances are regarded as criminal offences in China."

He stated China supports international cooperation on nuclear security and efforts of countries to enhance their nuclear security capacity, adding that China "has adopted strict security measures in venues for nuclear material storage, to prevent the theft, damage and other incidents of nuclear materials."

Chinese President Hu Jintao delivered an important speech on Tuesday at the Seoul Summit. The Chinese leader elaborated on China's position, efforts made and important measures taken in the field of nuclear security. He said that China has taken active steps to enhance nuclear security and achieved new and substantive progress since the first nuclear security summit in Washington two years ago.

As a major country for the development of nuclear energy, China has always adopted a responsible attitude and taken nuclear security very seriously, Miao Wei said, adding that China firmly opposes nuclear proliferation and nuclear terrorism.