October 25, 2016
What Is Russia’s Plan With India?
Petr Topychkanov
On the weekend of October 15 and 16, Russian president Vladimir Putin visited India for the bilateral meeting of leaders of Russia and India, and the BRICS summit in Goa. As usual, president Putin spent few hours in India. This made it more difficult to cover all the important issues of the strategic partnership between Russia and India. Russia seemed reluctant to go into details on some issues. Pakistan was one of them.
Hibakusha Join Activists at U.N. Event in Calling for Nuke Ban Treaty
Seana K. Magee | Japan Times
Atomic bomb survivors from Hiroshima and Nagasaki joined anti-nuclear activists in New York Thursday where they voiced their concerns ahead of a General Assembly meeting that will vote on whether to ban nuclear weapons. The resolution, to be voted on in the coming weeks, has the potential to break a decades-long stalemate over the legality of nuclear weapons. It sets out to establish a mandate in 2017 on a “legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons, leading toward their total elimination,” and has given aging atomic bomb survivors a renewed sense of optimism.
Israel Looks to Buy Three New Nuke-Capable Subs
Times of Israel
Israel is seeking to buy three more advanced submarines from Germany at a combined price of $1.3 billion, an Israeli newspaper reported Friday.The planned purchase aims to replace within the next decade the oldest vessels in its existing Dolphin fleet, which began entering service in 1999, the Maariv daily reported.Contacted by AFP, the Defense Ministry declined to comment on the report.
North Korean Coal Windfall Boosts Nuclear Advance
Alastair Gale | Wall Street Journal
North Korean coal prices have surged by 40% in value recently, boosting funds for Pyongyang’s advancing nuclear program and undermining U.S.-led efforts to force it into talks by choking its finances. The price rise for North Korea’s biggest export item gives fresh significance to negotiations between the U.S. and China about tightening sanctions on North Korea in response to its nuclear activities. A focus of those talks, now under way at the United Nations, is how to close a loophole that allows North Korean coal to flow to China largely unhindered, diplomats say.
Taiwan to End Nuclear Power Generation in 2025
Satoshi Ukai | Asahi Shimbun
In a rare move for power-hungry Asia, the Taiwanese government has decided to abolish nuclear power generation by 2025 to meet the public's demand for a nuclear-free society following the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Taiwan's Executive Yuan, equivalent to the Cabinet in Japan, approved revisions to the electricity business law, which aim to promote the private-sector’s participation in renewable energy projects, on Oct. 20.
Ukraine to Start Active Phase of Nuclear Waste Storage Construction in 2017
Sputnik News
Ukraine is going to start active phase of construction works at its Centralized Spent Fuel Storage Facility (CSFSF) in the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Zone of Alienation in March 2017, the press service of Ukraine’s Energoatom nuclear corporation said on Monday. Rybchuk also said that Ukrainian authorities had received a report on CSFSF security and the Energoatoom expected a feedback on it within a month.