How Not to Talk About Nuclear Weapons
Toby Dalton
Growth is often interpreted as a sign of health. Thus the moniker “fastest growing” should be taken as a positive statement. Fastest growing economy, for instance. Or fastest growing middle class. Or fastest growing IT sector. In South Asia, there is one area where “fastest growing” has become something of a slur: the fastest growing nuclear programme.
Trump Assigns White House Team to Target Iran Nuclear Deal, Sidelining State Department
Jana Winter, Robbie Gramer, Dan de Luce | Foreign Policy
After a contentious meeting with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson this week, President Donald Trump instructed a group of trusted White House staffers to make the potential case for withholding certification of Iran at the next 90-day review of the nuclear deal. The goal was to give Trump what he felt the State Department had failed to do: the option to declare that Tehran was not in compliance with the contentious agreement. “The president assigned White House staffers with the task of preparing for the possibility of decertification for the 90-day review period that ends in October — a task he had previously given to Secretary Tillerson and the State Department,” a source close to the White House told Foreign Policy.
Iran Skips Opportunity to Upset Nuclear Deal Over U.S. Sanctions: Sources
Reuters
Iran decided on Friday for the second time since January not to upset its nuclear pact with six world powers, two informed sources said, despite public statements by Tehran accusing the United States of violating the deal. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday new U.S. economic sanctions imposed against Iran contravened the nuclear accord reached with world powers in 2015 and he pledged Tehran would "resist" them while respecting the deal itself.
CIA Chief Signals Desire for Regime Change in North Korea
Eli Watkins | CNN
CIA Director Mike Pompeo on Thursday evening offered some of the most aggressive comments yet from the Trump administration with regard to North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un. Although Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has in the past said the US was against forcing Kim out of power or the collapse of his government, Pompeo said that the administration needed to find a way to separate Kim from his growing nuclear stockpile.
China Prepares for a Crisis Along North Korea Border
Jeremy Page | Wall Street Journal
China has been bolstering defenses along its 880-mile frontier with North Korea and realigning forces in surrounding regions to prepare for a potential crisis across their border, including the possibility of a U.S. military strike.
South Korea's New Energy Minister Says to Support Nuclear Reactor Exports
Reuters
South Korea's new energy minister on Monday said he plans to support the country's push to sell nuclear reactors overseas, even as the nation curbs nuclear power at home. State-run Korea Electric Power Corp (KEPCO) is building the first of four nuclear plants in the United Arab Emirates in an $18.6 billion deal, and is scouting for more business in Britain and other countries.