The Long Demise of the German H-List
Mark Hibbs
At a meeting in Berlin today I was privy to an update, from someone who really knows this stuff, on the European Union’s efforts to amend its dual-use export control regime. The key document is called Regulation 428/2009 and the review of it, which is mandated by its Article 25, turns out to be a very complex matter indeed. Not only have the technologies requiring export controls evolved since the regulation was enacted eight years ago, but other issues have emerged for EU member states to worry about: How to deal with new challenging technologies, 3D printing and cloud computing, for example.
Trump Inherits Secret Cyberwar on North Korea
David E. Sanger and William J. Broad | New York Times
Three years ago, President Barack Obama ordered Pentagon officials to step up their cyber and electronic strikes against North Korea’s missile program in hopes of sabotaging test launches in their opening seconds. Soon a large number of the North’s military rockets began to explode, veer off course, disintegrate in midair and plunge into the sea. Advocates of such efforts say they believe that targeted attacks have given American antimissile defenses a new edge and delayed by several years the day when North Korea will be able to threaten American cities with nuclear weapons launched atop intercontinental ballistic missiles.
N. Korea Fires Four Ballistic Missiles: Seoul Military
Yonhap News
North Korea on Monday fired four ballistic missiles into the East Sea, Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said, in an apparent reaction to the ongoing joint military drills between South Korea and the United States. The four projectiles were launched from an area near the North's Dongchang-ri long-range missile site at 7:36 a.m. and flew about 1,000 kilometers before splashing into the East Sea, JCS said in a text message. "We estimate the North fired four ballistic missiles. We are conducting an analysis (with the U.S.) on the missiles to determine their type and other specifications. It will take a while before we can come up with a final analysis (based on U.S. satellite data)," the JCS said.
South Korea Acting President Calls for Swift Deployment of U.S. Anti-Missile System
Reuters
South Korea's acting president Hwang Kyo-ahn said on Monday Seoul should swiftly complete the deployment of a U.S. anti-missile defense system after North Korea launched four missiles earlier in the day. "We should quickly finish the deployment of THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) deployment and acquire a defense system against North Korea's nuclear missiles," said Hwang in opening remarks while presiding over a National Security Council meeting after the North's latest provocation.
Fearing U.S. Withdrawal, Europe Considers Its Own Nuclear Deterrent
Max Fisher | New York Times
An idea, once unthinkable, is gaining attention in European policy circles: a European Union nuclear weapons program. Under such a plan, France’s arsenal would be repurposed to protect the rest of Europe and would be put under a common European command, funding plan, defense doctrine, or some combination of the three. It would be enacted only if the Continent could no longer count on American protection. Though no new countries would join the nuclear club under this scheme, it would amount to an unprecedented escalation in Europe’s collective military power and a drastic break with American leadership.
EU Approves Hungary’s Russian-Financed Nuclear Station
Financial Times
The EU on Monday gave the final approval for Hungary’s €12.5bn deal to expand its Soviet-era nuclear power station at Paks using Russian technology and financing. Brussels had been probing whether Hungarian state aid for the project would harm competition, but finally gave the green light more than three years after prime minister Viktor Orban and Russian president Vladimir Putin personally agreed the deal. The agreement was unveiled in January 2014 — just months before the EU and the US moved to sanction Moscow over its annexation of Crimea and military intervention in Ukraine.