Trump Exits Open Skies Treaty, Moves to Discard Observation Planes
Michael R. Gordon | Wall Street Journal
The Trump administration formally shut the door on the Open Skies treaty Sunday, exiting the agreement while moving to get rid of the U.S. Air Force planes that have been used to carry out the nearly three-decade-old accord. President Trump had served notice in May that the U.S. would withdraw in six months from the accord, which was intended to reduce the risk of war by allowing Russia and the West to carry out unarmed reconnaissance flights over each other’s territories. U.S. officials, however, have long complained that Moscow hasn’t fully complied with its terms. In a move that could complicate President-elect Joe Biden’s options if he sought to re-enter the agreement, the Trump administration is taking steps to dispose of the two specially equipped OC-135B planes the U.S. has used to carry out Open Skies flights.
Biden Faces a Race Against the Clock for U.S. to Rejoin Iran Nuclear Deal
Dan De Luce, Ken Dilanian, Saphora Smith, and Ali Arouzi | NBC News
President-elect Joe Biden has promised to rejoin the Iran nuclear agreement if Iran abides by the deal, but both sides will have to race against the clock and navigate a political minefield to reach that goal. With Iran due to hold elections in June, any diplomatic effort will have to move swiftly during Biden's first few months in office, say former U.S. officials, European diplomats and regional experts. Iran's current president, Hassan Rouhani, threw his weight behind the 2015 agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and there's no guarantee the next Iranian president will be as open to cutting a deal.
S. Korea May Need to Consider Nuclear Armament if North Sticks to Nukes: Opposition Head
Yonhap News Agency
The head of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) said Tuesday that South Korea may need to consider arming itself with nuclear weapons if North Korea ends up holding on to its nuclear weapons for good. “If the North holds on to its nukes to the end without giving them up, I believe there is the need for us to reconsider nuclear armament,” Kim Chong-in, PPP's interim chief, said during a press conference hosted by the Foreign Correspondents' Club in Seoul. The comments were made as Kim laid out potential means of dealing with nuclear threats from the North -- either receiving protection under the U.S. nuclear umbrella or allowing the stationing of American nuclear arms on the Korean Peninsula.
India Now Working on 1,500-km Range BrahMos Supersonic Cruise Missile
Snehesh Alex Philip | ThePrint
India Tuesday began a series of tests of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, even as work goes on to extend its range. ThePrint has learnt that India is working on a 1,500-km range version of the system that can be launched from land, water or air. BrahMos, the only supersonic cruise missile in the world that flies at three times the speed of sound (2.8 Mach), currently has a range of 290 km, but efforts are also on to extend this to 400 km. The Army carried out the first of several ‘live missile tests’ of the 290-km range BrahMos in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The Navy and the Air Force — which has fitted its Sukhoi Su-30 MKI fighters fitted with the BrahMos — are also likely to carry out tests this week.
Iran Slams European Criticism on Expanding Nuclear Programme
Maziar Motamedi | Al-Jazeera
Iran has condemned a statement by three European powers expressing concern over its scaling back of commitments under the landmark 2015 nuclear deal. In a statement on Saturday, the Iranian foreign ministry’s spokesman called a statement by France, Germany, and the United Kingdom – together known as the E3 – “irresponsible”. Saeed Khatibzadeh called on the E3 to fulfil its commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the 2015 nuclear deal signed between Iran and world powers that put curbs on Iran’s nuclear programme in exchange for the lifting of multilateral sanctions. “The peaceful nuclear activities of the Islamic Republic of Iran are fully within the framework of international laws and completely legal and legitimate, and in line with countries’ intrinsic legal rights,” Khatibzadeh said in a statement.