Next US-Iran nuclear talks are Thursday in Geneva as Washington awaits proposed deal from Tehran 

John Gambrell | Associated Press 

The United States and Iran will hold their next round of nuclear talks Thursday in Geneva, a facilitator said Sunday, as the Islamic Republic faces both the threat of a U.S. military strike and new protests at home. ... There was no immediate comment from the Trump administration, which has built up the largest U.S. military presence in the Middle East in decades as it pushes its longtime adversary for concessions on its nuclear program and more. Shortly before Oman’s announcement, Iran’s top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, told CBS in an interview that he expected to meet U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff in Geneva on Thursday, and said a “good chance” remained for a diplomatic solution on the nuclear issue. 

US re-asserts 2025 strikes ‘obliterated’ Iran’s nuclear programme 

Al Jazeera  

The White House has insisted that last year’s strikes against Iran destroyed the country’s nuclear programme despite a recent claim by a senior US official that Tehran is a week away from having bombmaking material. Karoline Leavitt, the White House spokesperson, told reporters on Tuesday that the June 2025 attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, known as Operation Midnight Hammer, was an “overwhelmingly successful mission”. ... But just this weekend, President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff suggested that Iran is close to having enough material to build a nuclear weapon. “They’re probably a week away from having industrial-grade bomb-making material,” Witkoff told Fox News on Saturday. 

Russia accuses Ukraine of seeking to acquire nuclear weapon with help from UK and France 

Reuters 

Russia accused Ukraine on Tuesday of trying to obtain a nuclear weapon with help from Britain and France, an allegation Kyiv called an absurd lie. A French foreign ministry spokesperson said the allegation was "blatant disinformation". A spokesperson for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: "There's no truth to this." ... In a statement published on the fourth anniversary of the war, Russia's SVR foreign intelligence service said Britain and France believed that Ukraine would be able to secure more favourable terms for ending the war if it possessed "a nuclear bomb, or at least a so-called 'dirty bomb'". It did not include documentary evidence to back its assertion. 

US meeting Russian and Chinese delegations for nuclear arms control talks, official says 

Olivia Le Poidevin | Reuters 

The U.S. met a Russian delegation in Geneva on Monday and will meet a Chinese delegation on Tuesday for talks about forging a potential multilateral nuclear arms control treaty, a senior U.S. State Department official said. The U.S. has called for a new, broader arms control treaty that would bring in China as well as Russia, after the agreement limiting U.S. and Russian missile and warhead deployments, known as New START, expired.  

US intelligence agencies tie Chinese explosive test to push for a completely new nuclear arsenal

Zachary Cohen and Kylie Atwood | CNN 

US intelligence agencies believe that China is developing a new generation of nuclear weapons and has conducted at least one covert explosive test in recent years as part of a broader push to completely transform its nuclear arsenal into the world’s most technologically advanced, according to multiple sources familiar with the US intelligence assessments. ... Evidence collected as part of a subsequent review of the June 2020 event, has led US officials to conclude the test was motivated by China’s pursuit of next-generation nuclear weapons, the sources familiar said. 

Kim reelected to top post of North Korea’s ruling party as it hails his nuclear buildup 

Kim Tong-Hyung | Associated Press 

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was reelected to the top post of the ruling Workers’ Party, with delegates crediting him for bolstering the country’s nuclear arsenal and strengthening its regional standing, state media reported Monday. The report from the party congress, a major propaganda spectacle where Kim is expected to outline his political and military goals for the next five years, suggests he will double down on accelerating a nuclear arsenal already equipped with missiles capable of threatening Asian U.S. allies and the American mainland.