Live Nuclear Testing Could Resume in 'Months' If Needed, Official Says
Aaron Mehta | Defense News
A live nuclear test could be arranged within “months” if requested by the president, a top defense department nuclear official said Tuesday, following a report that the Trump administration has discussed the first American nuclear test in decades. However, Drew Walter, performing the duties of deputy assistant secretary of defense for nuclear matters, stressed that there “has been no policy change” when it comes to avoiding live nuclear testing. Over the weekend, the Washington Post reported that there have been high-level discussions around the possibility of doing a live nuclear test for the first time since 1992. Walter said it was his understanding that “a very quick test with limited diagnostics” could occur “within months” if ordered by the president for technical or geopolitical reasons.
US to End Sanctions Waivers Allowing Some Work at Iranian Nuclear Sites
Arshad Mohammed and Humeyra Pamuk | Reuters
The United States said on Wednesday it will terminate sanctions waivers that had allowed Russian, Chinese and European companies to carry out work originally designed to make it harder for Iranian nuclear sites to be used for weapons development. The waivers, which officials said expire on July 27, covered the conversion of Iran’s Arak heavy water research reactor, the provision of enriched uranium for its Tehran Research Reactor and the transfer of spent and scrap reactor fuel abroad. However, Pompeo said Washington would extend for 90 days a waiver allowing foreign work at a Russian-built nuclear power plant at Bushehr to ensure safety. The wider decision seemed aimed at tightening the U.S. “maximum pressure” policy applied since Washington abandoned the 2015 Iran nuclear deal two years ago.
North Koreans Accused of Laundering $2.5 Billion for Nuclear Program
Katie Benner | New York Times
North Korean and Chinese nationals are operating a multibillion-dollar money laundering scheme to help fund North Korea’s nuclear weapons program, the Justice Department said in an indictment unsealed Thursday, a case that underscores the Trump administration’s inability to halt Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons program through diplomacy. The department charged 28 North Koreans and five Chinese nationals of using a web of more than 200 shell companies to launder over $2.5 billion in assets through the international banking system. The charges are an acknowledgment that the United States has been unable to stop North Korea from building nuclear weapons by imposing economic sanctions and through President Trump’s attempts to broker an agreement with North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un.
Russia's ‘Doomsday Drone’ Prepares for Testing
Thomas Nilsen | Barents Observer
One year after the fatal accident with a nuclear-powered missile in the White Sea, Russia's weapon designers say a test launch the Poseidon nuclear powered underwater drone will take place this fall. The test-launch will take place from the “Belgorod” submarine, a source in the military-industrial complex told RIA Novosti. The drone, formed as a giant torpedo, is built to carry a several megatons nuclear warhead and is described by weapons analysts as a “doomsday nuke”. Powered by a small nuclear reactor, the Poseidon has a believed range of 10,000 km across the world’s oceans. In March 2018, President Vladimir Putin confirmed the existence of the upcoming giant underwater drone.
Russia Begins Construction of the First PAK DA Strategic Bomber - Sources
TASS
Russia has commenced construction of its first strategic stealth bomber within the Perspective Aviation Complex for Long-Range Aviation (PAK DA) program, also known as “Product 80” and “Courier”, a source in the military-industrial complex told TASS. Another source told TASS that construction of the plane’s cockpit is already underway. “The final assembly of the entire machine should be complete in 2021,” he noted. It is known that the PAK DA is designed using the flying wing scheme. The machine will feature technologies and materials that reduce its radar visibility (stealth technology).
Japan Probes Theft of Hypersonic Missile Plans - Report
Phil Muncaster | Infosecurity Magazine
The Japanese government is investigating a potentially serious breach of national security after a cyber-attack on Mitsubishi Electric earlier this year which may have yielded top secret missile plans. The tech giant said in a statement earlier this week that it reported an incident to the Defense Ministry in February, in which sensitive information including personal data on 8000 employees may have been stolen, according to AP. Chief cabinet secretary Yoshihide Suga is said to have told reporters that the government is now investigating “the possible impact of the information leak on national security.” The stolen data is thought to relate to a prototype missile that Mitsubishi was bidding to build. The firm didn’t win the bid but held sensitive documents related to the design as part of the process.