Nuclear Won’t Save the AI Buildout 

John H. Pendleton | The Capitol Forum 

The biggest names in technology seemingly have made nuclear power central to meeting their voracious energy appetites. Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and Meta have announced agreements, funded startups, and signed power purchase commitments they claim will power the AI revolution with carbon-free, nuclear-generated electricity. While this story sounds promising, the numbers underpinning it deserve scrutiny, for the reality of a hyperscaler-driven nuclear energy resurgence is far from assured. 

Report: Russia's nuclear-powered 'Skyfall' missile is dirty and dangerous 

Geoff Brumfiel and Connie Hanzhang Jin | NPR 

Sometime on Oct. 21 of last year, high above the Arctic Circle, a lone missile shot skyward from a Russian island. The missile flew northeast and then banked and began flying in loops for hours over the barren, frozen landscape. According to Russian and Western sources, the new weapon, known in Russian as Burevestnik and by NATO as Skyfall, was powered by a small nuclear reactor. Few other details were forthcoming. 

First round of U.S.-Iran negotiations ends, technical talks will continue after Trump threats shake summit 

Freddie Clayton and Megan Shannon | NBC News 

The U.S. and Iran, along with mediating parties, established a road map for reaching a final deal within 60 days during Sunday’s talks in Switzerland, according to a joint statement from the mediating countries… The main success of Sunday’s talks was the establishment of a “High Level Committee” with political oversight of mediation, which agreed on a road map “towards reaching a final deal within 60 days, laying the foundation for the immediate commencement of further technical talks” on Iran’s nuclear program, sanctions and dispute resolution, the statement said. 

(LEAD) N. Korea's Kim calls for expanding nuclear arsenal to 'overtake the world' 

Woo Jae-yeon | Yonhap News 

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called for efforts to further increase his country's nuclear arsenal "with a goal of overtaking the world," Pyongyang's state media reported Tuesday. According to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) convened the second plenary meeting of its ninth central committee for three days from Saturday, presided over by leader Kim, to assess how the country's policies have fared in the first half of the year and review the agenda set at a major party congress in February. 

India in talks to sell supersonic BrahMos missile to UAE, sources say 

Saurabh Sharma and Aftab Ahmed | Reuters/Yahoo 

The Indian government is in talks with the UAE to sell some of its flagship defence systems, including the supersonic cruise missile BrahMos, four Indian sources said, as the Gulf nation steps up arms ​procurement following the war in the Middle East. The discussions, which have not been previously reported, include the potential sale of India's air defence system Akashteer, two sources ‌with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. 

Trump’s Iran Debacle Could Be a Gift for America 

Robert Malley and Stephen Wertheim | The New York Times 

With Iran, Donald Trump has done the impossible once more… In its broad contours, however, the result is familiar, verging on routine. True to form, the United States launched a regime-change war in the Middle East. It targeted an adversary that members of both parties have long treated as a near-existential threat. And again, only faster this time, the effort came to grief. The question now is whether the cycle of ineffectual American intervention has been broken, or simply taken another turn.