China’s Attitudes Toward Missile Defense and Its Limitation
Li Bin | Bulletin of Atomic Scientists
If there were to be a new international agreement to limit certain aspects of missile defense, it could reduce suspicion and competition among the United States, Russia, China and other relevant parties But the types of missile defense limitations that might be of interest to China—including agreements on numbers of missile interceptors, on the non-weaponization of space, and on elimination of ground-based midcourse defenses—involve policy changes that the United States has opposed in recent years.
Infrastructure Improvements at North Korea’s Yongbyon Nuclear Research Facility
Frank V. Pabian, Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., and Jack Liu | 38 North
Commercial satellite imagery from June 21 indicates that improvements to the infrastructure at North Korea’s Yongbyon Nuclear Scientific Research Center are continuing at a rapid pace. The MWe plutonium production reactor, the Radiochemical Laboratory, and the Experimental Light Water Reactor have all seen modifications and improvements.
U.S. Begins to Dismantle Iran Nuclear Deal Sanctions Relief
Matthew Lee | Associated Press
The Trump administration on Wednesday began dismantling the sanctions relief that was granted to Iran under the 2015 nuclear deal, a step that follows President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the international accord. The Treasury Department announced it had revoked licenses that allowed U.S.-controlled foreign firms to export commercial aircraft parts to Iran as well as permitted Americans to trade in Iranian carpets, pistachios and caviar.
Iran Reopens Uranium Feedstock Plant in Preparation to Boost Enrichment
Reuters
Iran has reopened a nuclear plant idle for nine years, its atomic energy agency (AEOI) said on Wednesday, as Tehran prepares to increase uranium enrichment capacity if a nuclear deal with world powers falls apart after the U.S. withdrawal. The move is symbolic and permissible under the nuclear agreement.
Deal Struck for Putin-Trump Summit, Helsinki Possible Venue
Denis Pinchuk and Polina Ivanova | Reuters
Moscow and Washington struck a deal on Wednesday to hold a summit soon between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump, a move likely to worry some U.S. allies and draw a fiery reaction from some of Trump’s critics at home. Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov, speaking after Putin met U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton in the Kremlin, said the summit would take place in a mutually convenient third country and that several more weeks were needed to prepare for it.
Last to Escape, First to Disarm? Three Scenarios of War and Peace on the Korean Peninsula
Ulrich Kühn
In 2018, political relations on the Korean peninsula are in flux to an unprecedented degree. Taking note of the unclear situation, this article deliberately engages in speculation and develops three scenarios—“diplomacy and deterrence”; “war and turmoil”; and “peace and retreat”—for the Korean Peninsula. The author does not claim that any of these will become reality—and in certain cases strongly wishes the opposite.