China’s Tests Are No Sputnik Moment
James M. Acton | Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
China’s recent tests of a novel nuclear-weapon delivery system may not represent a new threat to the United States. But they should prompt the development of a new diplomatic strategy to prevent a dangerous arms race.
China Conducted Two Hypersonic Weapons Tests This Summer
Demetri Sevastopulo | Financial Times
The Chinese military conducted two hypersonic weapons tests over the summer, raising US concerns that Beijing is gaining ground in the race to develop a new generation of arms. On July 27 the Chinese military launched a rocket that used a “fractional orbital bombardment” system to propel a nuclear-capable “hypersonic glide vehicle” around the earth for the first time, according to four people familiar with US intelligence assessments. The Financial Times this week reported that the first test was in August, rather than at the end of July. China subsequently conducted a second hypersonic test on August 13, according to two people familiar with the matter.
North Korea’s New Sub-Launched Missile Sign of Diversifying Nuclear Arsenal, Experts Say
Michelle Ye Hee Lee | Washington Post
There was the ballistic missile launched from a train. Then a hypersonic missile. And now, North Korea has launched a new ballistic missile underwater from a submarine. The barrage of tests in recent weeks by North Korea has served as a reminder that Pyongyang’s nuclear ambitions aren’t going away — and that, in fact, the country is chipping away at the wishlist of new weapons that leader Kim Jong Un laid out in January. And with many items still on that list, there probably will be more tests to come.
U.S. to North Korea: It's Time for Sustained, Substantive Talks
Michelle Nichols | Reuters
The United States has offered to meet North Korea without preconditions and made clear that Washington has no hostile intent toward Pyongyang, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said on Wednesday as the Security Council met over North Korea’s latest missile launch. North Korea—formally known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK)—has long accused the United States of having a hostile policy toward the Asian state and asserted that it has the right to develop weapons for self-defense. “The DPRK must abide by the Security Council resolutions and it is time to engage in sustained and substantive dialogue toward the goal of complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” Thomas-Greenfield told reporters.
IAEA Head Plans Iran Trip as Allies Seek to Reboot Nuclear Talks
Nick Wadhams and Annmarie Hordern | Bloomberg
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said he will visit Iran in the coming days as the U.S. and Europe seek to resolve concerns over Iran’s recent nuclear activity and jump-start talks on re-entering the 2015 deal that put severe limits on its program. Director-General Rafael Mariano Grossi said he hopes to meet Iran’s senior leadership to discuss disagreements around IAEA nuclear inspections, which he’s described as being in a “fragile state” since the country ramped up its uranium-enrichment and rolled back international monitors’ ability to access some facilities.
S Korea Test Launches 1st Domestically Made Space Rocket
Kim Tong-Hyung | Associated Press
South Korea’s first domestically produced space rocket reached its desired altitude but failed to deliver a dummy payload into orbit in its first test launch on Thursday. South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who observed the launch on-site, still described the test as an “excellent accomplishment” that takes the country a step further in its pursuit of a satellite launch program.