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N. Korea, Planning Rocket Launch, Getting Better at Stealth

IN THIS ISSUE: N. Korea, Planning Rocket Launch, Getting Better at Stealth, China's nuclear envoy in North Korea amid sanctions push: KCNA, A Nuclear Weapon the U.S. Doesn't Need, With Iran Nuclear Deal in Place, Key Senators Look to Slap New Sanctions on Country, Northeast Asia Braces for Potential N. Korean Rocket Launch, India Is Putting Part of Its Nuclear-Missile Maker Up For Sale

Published on February 2, 2016

N. Korea, Planning Rocket Launch, Getting Better at Stealth

Eric Talmadge | Associated Press

Less than a month after its purported H-bomb test, North Korea announced Tuesday it is planning a rocket launch as soon as next week. Though speculation of a launch had been growing for about a week, experts say that with underground railways, giant tarps and a movable launch pad structure in place the North is getting a lot better at hiding its preparations.

China's Nuclear Envoy in North Korea Amid Sanctions Push: KCNA

Reuters

China's envoy for the North Korean nuclear issue arrived in the capital, Pyongyang, on Tuesday, the North's KCNA news agency reported, amid a push by the United States and South Korea for tougher sanctions on the North after its fourth nuclear test. China's Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Affairs Wu Dawei was expected to hold discussions with the North Koreans on the nuclear issue after his arrival there, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported from the North Korean capital.

A Nuclear Weapon the U.S. Doesn't Need

Bloomberg View

For a president who famously advocated for a world without nuclear weapons, Barack Obama has done a lot to keep the U.S. nuclear arsenal intact. That’s not a criticism -- it was his promise that was naive, not his policy -- but in one respect, his strategy is unnecessarily destabilizing. The administration’s proposal to spend up to $30 billion to create a new nuclear cruise missile meant to be carried by the aging B-52 bomber makes no sense financially or strategically. 

With Iran Nuclear Deal in Place, Key Senators Look to Slap New Sanctions on Country 

Karoun Demirjian | Washington Post

Just weeks after the Iran nuclear deal took effect, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is taking fresh aim at Tehran with stepped-up sanctions to punish the Islamic Republic for aggressive non-nuclear activities. Chairman Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and at least one other senator are crafting new measures to address everything from Iran’s recent ballistic missile tests to the country’s human rights violations to a reauthorization of the soon-expiring Iran Sanctions Act (ISA). 

Northeast Asia Braces for Potential N. Korean Rocket Launch

Deutsche Welle

Just weeks after North Korea carried out its fourth nuclear test, attention is now focused on whether Pyongyang will launch a rocket, a move that would further heighten regional tensions. Julian Ryall reports from Tokyo. In the grounds of Japan's Ministry of Defense, located at the heart of Tokyo, a battery of Patriot Advanced Capability-3 surface-to-air missiles is pointed at the sky. While the stationing of such weapons in the megacity is more a demonstration of Japan's resolve than a meaningful last line of defense, the 33 other Patriot units deployed across northern and eastern Japan, as well as Aegis destroyers equipped with the Standard Missile-3 interceptor system in the Sea of Japan, may well be called into action should North Korea go ahead with plans to launch a missile.

India Is Putting Part of Its Nuclear-Missile Maker Up for Sale

Nc Bipindra | Bloomberg Business

India wants to embrace more shareholder scrutiny for the sake of national security. The country is seeking to divest 20 percent of each state-owned defense company -- including nuclear-missile maker Bharat Dynamics Ltd. -- to boost their efficiency, Defence Production Secretary A. K. Gupta said. India also plans to cut its 75 percent shareholding in Bharat Electronics Ltd., he said.

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