United Nations
On April 28, the Japanese Foreign Ministry hosted a side event at the NPT Prep Com meeting at the United Nations entitled "Stepping Back from the Nuclear Precipice: Urgent Actions in Pursuit of a World Without Nuclear Weapons." Opening remarks were given by Mr. IWAYA Takeshi, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, followed by a keynote presentation by Carnegie’s Dr. George Perkovich and a speech by H.E Mr. Harold Agyeman, Chair of the Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2026 NPT Review Conference. Other speakers included Dr. Nobumasa Akiyama, IGEP member, H.E. Ms. Maritza Chan-Valverde, Costa Rican ambassador to the UN, and Ms. Gaukhar Mukhatzhanova, Japan Chair for a World without Nuclear Weapons at the Vienna Center for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation.
Barak Ravid | Axios
The Trump administration gave Iran a proposal for a nuclear deal during the fourth round of negotiations on Sunday, a U.S. official and two other sources with direct knowledge tell Axios. Why it matters: It was the first time since the nuclear talks started in early April that White House envoy Steve Witkoff presented a written proposal to the Iranians. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi took the proposal back to Tehran for consultations with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, President Masoud Pezeshkian and other top officials.
Nayera Abdallah, Parisa Hafezi and Tala Ramadan | Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States was getting very close to securing a nuclear deal with Iran, and Tehran had "sort of" agreed to the terms. "We're in very serious negotiations with Iran for long-term peace," Trump said on a tour of the Gulf, according to a shared pool report by AFP… An Iranian source familiar with the negotiations said there were still gaps to bridge in the talks with the United States. Oil prices fell by about $2 on Thursday on expectations for a U.S.-Iran nuclear deal that could result in sanctions easing.
Leila Abboud and Polina Ivanova | Financial Times
French President Emmanuel Macron said he was “ready to open a discussion” with European allies about stationing France’s nuclear weapons on their soil, in an effort to beef up defences against Russia… He laid out three conditions for extending France’s nuclear protection to European allies: Paris would not pay for the security of other countries; any deployment of France’s nuclear weapons could not deplete its ability to defend itself; and any decision to use the bombs would remain solely in the hands of the French president.
Richard Engel | NBC News
Iran is ready to sign a nuclear deal with certain conditions with President Donald Trump in exchange for lifting economic sanctions, a top adviser to Iran’s supreme leader told NBC News on Wednesday. He said Iran would commit to never making nuclear weapons, getting rid of its stockpiles of highly enriched uranium which can be weaponized, agree to enrich uranium only to the lower levels needed for civilian use, and allow international inspectors to supervise the process, in exchange for the immediate lifting of all economic sanctions on Iran. Asked if Iran would agree to sign an agreement today if those conditions were met, Shamkhani said, “Yes.”
DIA Public Affairs
The Defense Intelligence Agency recently released an unclassified assessment titled “Golden Dome for America: Current and Future Missile Threats to the U.S. Homeland” to depict threats a sophisticated missile defense system for the United States would defend against. The product presents the agency’s unclassified intelligence on adversary missile threats and capabilities.