A Nuclear Legacy Within Reach
New York Times
The Air Force has formally begun the process of asking defense contractors to submit proposals for a new long-range cruise missile and a new land-based intercontinental ballistic missile. These two weapons, capable of carrying nuclear payloads, will cost billions of dollars. The first is unnecessary; the second, debatable. The invitations are ostensibly aimed at modernizing the nation’s nuclear arsenal. The weapons’ dubious value aside, the requests also seem to contradict President Obama’s 2009 promise to change American nuclear policy in ways that would make the nation safer by reducing threats from the world’s most lethal weapons.
Iran Executes Nuclear Scientist Who Returned to Country From U.S.
Saeed Kamali Dehghan | Guardian
An Iranian nuclear scientist, whose disappearance in Saudi Arabia in 2009 and subsequent return to Tehran a year later from Washington was shrouded in mystery, has been executed in his home country. The family of Shahram Amiri, an expert in radioactive isotopes at Tehran’s Malek Ashtar University, which is affiliated to Iran’s ministry of defence, told two overseas Persian-language TV networks at the weekend that he had been executed earlier in the week at an unknown location.
Residents Come Out in Force to Protest Against Sino-French Nuclear Project
Laura Zhou | South China Morning Post
Residents in Lianyungang in Jiangsu province ignored police warnings and filled a square for a demonstration over rumours the city would be the site of a Sino-French nuclear project. The rally over a used-nuclear-fuel processing and recycling plant underscored the tension between public concern over nuclear safety and the growing pressure on China to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels.
Japan Mulls Open-Ended Missile Intercept Order Amid Repeated North Korean Missile Testing
Ankit Panda | Diplomat
Japan is understandably not happy about North Korea’s latest ballistic missile launch, which, for the first time, resulted in a splashdown inside Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ). As I discussed last week, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe minced no words, describing the launch as a “grave threat” and “an outrageous act that cannot be tolerated.” Tokyo has long watched North Korean ballistic missiles fly over and into the Sea of Japan, but last week’s launch along with the ever-hastening pace of North Korean missile testing may give impetus to a change in Japanese policies.
Chain Reaction: Will Nuclear Plant Decision Herald Tougher Times for Sino-British Ties?
Cary Huang | South China Morning Post
In the first of a series of stories on China’s relations with other G20 members ahead of the G20 summit in Hangzhou, the South China Morning Post looks at the roller-coaster ride Sino-British relations went through in six years under former British prime minister David Cameron and the fate of a much vaunted ‘golden era’ in bilateral ties under his successor, Theresa May.
Belarus Under Fire for 'Dangerous Errors' at Nuclear Plant
Tony Wesolowsky | Guardian
Thirty years after world’s worst nuclear accident at Chernobyl, Belarus, which saw a quarter of its territory contaminated in the disaster, is building its first energy plant powered by the atom. However a series of mishaps at the site in Astravets are raising concerns over safety, particularly in Lithuania whose capital, Vilnius, lies less than 31 miles (50km) from the site.