G7 Leaders’ Hiroshima Vision on Nuclear Disarmament
The White House
We, the Leaders of the G7, met at a historical juncture in Hiroshima, which together with Nagasaki offers a reminder of the unprecedented devastation and immense human suffering the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki experienced as a result of the atomic bombings of 1945. In a solemn and reflective moment, we reaffirm, in this first G7 Leaders’ document with a particular focus on nuclear disarmament, our commitment to achieving a world without nuclear weapons with undiminished security for all.
An Iranian Nuclear Facility is so Deep Underground that US Airstrikes Likely Couldn’t Reach It
JON GAMBRELL | Associated Press
Near a peak of the Zagros Mountains in central Iran, workers are building a nuclear facility so deep in the earth that it is likely beyond the range of a last-ditch U.S. weapon designed to destroy such sites, according to experts and satellite imagery analyzed by The Associated Press. The photos and videos from Planet Labs PBC show Iran has been digging tunnels in the mountain near the Natanz nuclear site, which has come under repeated sabotage attacks amid Tehran’s standoff with the West over its atomic program.
IAEA Chief Pushes Plan to Secure Nuclear Plant Ahead of Ukraine Offensive
Stephanie Liechtenstein and John Hudson | The Washington Post
The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog is pushing for a last-minute agreement to secure Ukraine’s huge atomic power plant in Zaporizhzhia ahead of a counteroffensive that could see Kyiv’s forces drive directly through the potentially hazardous facility. After nearly nine months of failed efforts to forge an agreement between Ukraine and Russia to establish a protection zone around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant (ZNPP), Rafael Mariano Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, is now pushing for a new proposal to reduce the possibility of a catastrophic nuclear disaster. He plans to present a list of five principles for the U.N. Security Council to endorse later this month, U.S. and European diplomats told The Washington Post.
China and Ukraine Force Rivals Japan and South Korea to Rethink
Alexander Smith | NBC News
Host Japan is increasingly stepping beyond the boundaries set by its history and playing a more assertive role on the world stage. It’s not the only one, as some experts say North Korea’s escalating nuclear threats and worries over China’s sweeping territorial claims that have been sharpened by Russia’s war in Ukraine are pushing Washington’s friends in the region to embrace a more aggressive approach to security — and embrace each other.
EU Leaders Join Seoul in Condemning North Korean Nuclear and Missile Development
Jeongmin Kim | NK News
European Union and South Korean leaders denounced North Korea’s nuclear weapons program and continued ballistic missile launches in a joint statement on Monday, with the European Council president stressing that Pyongyang’s “back door” nuclear armament will not be accepted. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and the two EU leaders — European Council and European Commission presidents Charles Michel and Ursula von der Leyen — articulated the position following a meeting to discuss an array of economic and security issues. “We strongly condemn the DPRK’s repeated illegal ballistic missile launches as well as its ongoing nuclear development and references to the possible use of nuclear weapons,” the statement reads.
NASA has Sights Set on Mars With Help From a Nuclear Rocket Engine
Denise Chow, Tom Costello and Joel Seidman | NBC News
Earlier this year, the agency announced a partnership with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, to develop a rocket that uses nuclear propulsion to carry astronaut crews to deep-space destinations like Mars. This type of technology would significantly cut down on the time needed to reach Mars, making long-duration spaceflights less risky for the humans onboard. A conventional spacecraft powered by burning liquid fuel typically takes around seven or eight months to reach the red planet. Scientists have said nuclear rocket engines could shave off at least a third of that time.