Biden Adviser Says Return to Iran Deal “Highly Unlikely” in Near Future
Barak Ravid | Axios
White House Middle East coordinator Brett McGurk told a group of think tank experts last week it's “highly unlikely” that the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran will be revived in the near future, according to three U.S. sources who were on the call. Why it matters: The shrinking likelihood that the deadlock in the nuclear talks will be broken increases the pressure on the Biden administration to formulate a Plan B. Behind the scenes: McGurk said on the briefing call that the reason there is no nuclear deal is that the Iranians are unable to make a decision, according to the three sources.
Kim Threatens to Use Nukes Amid Tensions With US, S. Korea
Hyung-Jin Kim | Associated Press
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un warned he’s ready to use his nuclear weapons in potential military conflicts with the United States and South Korea, state media said Thursday, as he unleashed fiery rhetoric against rivals he says are pushing the Korean Peninsula to the brink of war. Kim’s speech to war veterans on the 69th anniversary of the end of the 1950-53 Korean War was apparently meant to boost internal unity in the impoverished country amid pandemic-related economic difficulties. While Kim has increasingly threatened his rivals with nuclear weapons, it’s unlikely that he would use them first against the superior militaries of the U.S. and its allies, observers say.
China Demands Korea Uphold ‘Three Nos’ Policy
Jo He-Rim | Korea Herald
As China appears to relay stronger words to express its discomfort against Seoul’s diplomacy plans largely aligning with the United States, eyes are on how the Yoon Suk-yeol administration will navigate its way through the US-China rivalry. The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Wednesday demanded the Yoon administration, which was inaugurated in May, to up hold the previous government’s China policy of the so-called “Three Nos”—no additional deployment of the US-made Terminal High Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system in Korea; no participation in a US-led missile defense network; and no involvement in a trilateral military alliance with the US and Japan.
As Sweden Gets Ready for NATO, Will Its Approach to Nuclear Weapons Change?
Jens Petersson | Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
With Sweden and Finland on a fast track to become members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the consequences for Sweden’s traditional stance on disarmament issues are now becoming more obvious. Many voices asked for a debate on these issues before Sweden applied for membership, but it is not until now that signs of such public discussion have been broadly seen. Sweden’s new alignment raises several questions also on the international level.
China to Raise Concerns Over AUKUS Submarine Deal at UN Treaty Meeting
Eryk Bagshaw | Sydney Morning Herald
China will raise the AUKUS submarine deal at the United Nations nuclear non-proliferation meeting next week and force Washington and Canberra to argue there has been no breach of the nuclear treaty. Ambassador Adam Scheinman, the US special representative for nuclear non-proliferation, said Beijing had made a series of claims about the US, United Kingdom and Australia violating the nuclear treaty [NPT] that would be disputed in New York.
Germany Rethinks Nuclear Power Exit Due to Threat of Winter Energy Crunch
Guy Chazan | Financial Times
Germany is rethinking its plan to exit nuclear power by the end of the year, as concern increases that Russia’s moves to cut gas supplies could trigger a winter electricity crunch in Europe’s largest economy. A U-turn on nuclear power would mark a big departure in German energy policy. It would be a particularly bitter pill for the Greens, a pillar of chancellor Olaf Scholz’s coalition government with roots in the country’s anti-nuclear movement. A person close to the Greens leadership said the party had come to the conclusion that “all options should be on the table” in the event of an energy crunch. One of those options might be to extend the life of the Isar 2 nuclear station in Bavaria beyond its shutdown date of December 31.