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North Korea Tests First Solid-Fuel ‘Hypersonic’ Missile

IN THIS ISSUE: North Korea Tests First Solid-Fuel ‘Hypersonic’ Missile, North Korea Will No Longer Pursue Reconciliation with South Because of Hostility, Kim Jong Un Says, Nuclear Battery: Chinese Firm Aiming for Mass Market Production, Congress Endorses New Nuclear Weapon, He Warned of Nuclear Disaster in Ukraine. Then He Was Thrown in a Russian Jail and Tortured, New Doctrine in Russia Ally Bela

Published on January 16, 2024

North Korea Tests First Solid-Fuel ‘Hypersonic’ Missile

Christian Davies | Financial Times

North Korea has said it successfully fired a solid-fuel “hypersonic” missile for the first time, demonstrating Pyongyang’s increasingly sophisticated missile capabilities as the regime deepens defence co-operation with Russia. The intermediate-range ballistic missile was launched from a site near Pyongyang on Sunday afternoon and flew eastward on a lofted trajectory for less than 12 minutes before splashing down in waters between North Korea and Japan, according to the South Korean and Japanese militaries.

North Korea Will No Longer Pursue Reconciliation with South Because of Hostility, Kim Jong Un Says

KIM TONG-HYUNG | Associated Press

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his country would no longer pursue reconciliation with South Korea and called for rewriting the North’s constitution to eliminate the idea of shared statehood between the war-divided countries, state media said Tuesday. The historic step to discard a decades-long pursuit of a peaceful unification, which was based on a sense of national homogeneity shared by both Koreas, comes amid heightened tensions where the pace of both Kim’s weapons development and the South’s military exercises with the United States have intensified in a tit-for-tat.

Nuclear Battery: Chinese Firm Aiming for Mass Market Production

World Nuclear News

Beijing Betavolt New Energy Technology Company Ltd claims to have developed a miniature atomic energy battery that can generate electricity stably and autonomously for 50 years without the need for charging or maintenance. It said the battery is currently in the pilot stage and will be put into mass production on the market. Atomic energy batteries - also known as nuclear batteries or radioisotope batteries - work on the principle of utilising the energy released by the decay of nuclear isotopes and converting it into electrical energy through semiconductor converters.

Congress Endorses New Nuclear Weapon

Shannon Bugos | Arms Control Association

Congress authorized $260 million for a new nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile (SLCM) for fiscal year 2024, despite the Biden administration’s clear desire not to pursue the weapon’s development…The administration did not request any funding for the nuclear SLCM in 2023 or 2024 because it assessed that the weapon has only “marginal utility” and would “impede investment in other priorities.” But for the second consecutive year, Congress overrode the Pentagon’s decision due to a majority of lawmakers viewing the SLCM as critical in the current nuclear environment.

He Warned of Nuclear Disaster in Ukraine. Then He Was Thrown in a Russian Jail and Tortured

Jennifer Hiller | The Wall Street Journal

When Russian troops launched the first-ever armed assault on a nuclear facility, Andriy Tuz became the voice to the West of what seemed a looming disaster. As spokesman for Ukraine’s sprawling Zaporizhzhia complex, the 33-year-old appeared on local television, Western media and in solemn online updates to describe chaotic scenes of falling shells and gunfire that shocked nuclear-safety experts and governments worldwide...In the months that followed, after Zaporizhzhia was taken, Tuz said he was tortured by the Russians and his mother’s life was threatened. And then to get out of prison, he agreed to make a video disavowing his previous statements that the facility wasn’t safe. He said he doesn’t believe that now, and he didn’t believe it then. He worries that the risk of nuclear terrorism remains high at Zaporizhzhia.

New Doctrine in Russia Ally Belarus for the First Time Provides for Using Nuclear Weapons

Associated Press

The defense minister of Belarus said Tuesday that the country closely allied with Russia will put forth a new military doctrine that for the first time provides for the use of nuclear weapons.Russia last year sent tactical nuclear weapons to be stationed in Belarus, although there are no details about how many. Russia has said it will maintain control over those weapons, which are intended for battlefield use and have short ranges and comparatively low yields. It was not immediately clear how the new doctrine might be applied to the Russian weapons.

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