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Supreme Leader Renews Opposition to Inspection of Iran's Military Sites

IN THIS ISSUE: Supreme Leader renews opposition to inspection of military sites, US weighing punishments for Russia's nuclear violations, S. Africa aims to select nuclear power partner, NRA approves restart for Ikata, doubts greet DPRK claims of advance to mini-nuclear weapons, South China Sea.

Published on May 21, 2015

Supreme Leader Renews Opposition to Inspection of Iran's Military Sites

Fars News Agency

"No permission will be given for inspection of any military centers and talks with the nuclear scientists and other sensitive fields of study and intrusion into their privacy," Ayatollah Khamenei said, addressing the Iranian cadets at Imam Hossein University.

U.S. Weighing Punishments for Russia's Nuclear Violations

Josh Rogin | Bloomberg News

The Obama administration is considering a range of options to respond to Russia’s ongoing violation of the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty. Part of the response could involve deploying new U.S. weapons to Eastern Europe.

South Africa Aims to Select Nuclear Power Partner This Year

Yahoo! News

South Africa intends to select this year an international partner to build a series of nuclear power reactors that would end the regular electricity blackouts that have hobbled economic growth, the energy minister told parliament Tuesday.

NRA Approves Restart for Third Nuclear Plant

Japan Times

Japan's nuclear regulator signed off on the basic safety of a reactor at a third nuclear plant on Wednesday, as the country inches toward rebooting its atomic industry more than four years after the crisis began at Tepco’s Fukushima No.1 facility.

Doubts Greet North Korea Claims of Advance to Mini-Nuclear Weapons

Anna Fifield | Washington Post

North Korea claimed Wednesday it has been able to make nuclear warheads small enough to fit on a missile — a development that, if verified, would mark a major advance in its military capabilities and the threat it can pose to the world.

How the South China Sea Could Help Beijing Level the Nuclear Playing Field

Will Englund | Washington Post

Tong Zhao, an analyst at the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center for Global Policy in Beijing, thinks China may have decided on a "bastion" policy, with the South China Sea as the bastion. By enforcing its claims to sovereignty, Beijing could turn the sea essentially into a Chinese lake, Zhao says.

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.