Nuclear Policy News – April 16, 2018

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TOP NEWS

Trump’s strike on Syria is exactly why North Korea wants nuclear weapons
CNN

In Moscow, a Sense of Relief After a Limited Syria Attack
New York Times

Pakistan successfully test launches enhanced version of Babur cruise missile
Dawn

Australia’s Least Likely Tourist Spot: A Test Site for Atom Bombs
New York Times

EAST ASIA

North Korea warns UK against ‘act of war’ after Royal Navy deployed to enforce sanctions
The Telegraph4/16/18
North Korea has accused Britain of an “act of war” for deploying warships off the Korean Peninsula to enforce international sanctions.

Abe faces awkward Trump summit on North Korea amid plummeting support in Japan
CNN4/16/18
Embattled Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who heads Tuesday to Mar-a-Lago for a meeting with US President Donald Trump, is in dire need of a policy win as he faces challenges abroad and protests at home.

MIDDLE EAST

Progress in Iran deal talks, but Trump stance uncertain
Reuters4/12/18
European officials are making headway toward an agreement to address U.S. concerns about the Iran nuclear deal, a European diplomat said on Thursday, but a second diplomat said it was unclear if U.S. President Donald Trump would embrace their work.

Trump’s strike on Syria is exactly why North Korea wants nuclear weapons
CNN4/13/18
As the US prepares to try and convince North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to give up his nuclear weapons, it may have made his counter argument for him.

RUSSIA/FSU/EUROPE

In Moscow, a Sense of Relief After a Limited Syria Attack
New York Times4/14/18
Moscow met the limited American-led airstrikes against Syria before dawn on Saturday with plenty of bluster and heated rhetoric, starting with an uncharacteristically quick response from President Vladimir V. Putin condemning the attack and accusing the United States of aggravating the humanitarian situation.

SOUTH ASIA

Pakistan successfully test launches enhanced version of Babur cruise missile
Dawn4/14/18
Pakistan on Saturday conducted a successful test of an enhanced range version of the indigenously developed Babur cruise missile to bolster the country’s deterrence capabilities, an Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) press release said.

Overcoming India and Pakistan’s Perpetual Standoff in Kashmir
The Diplomat4/13/18
Increasing tensions between the two countries don’t augur well for the fragile South Asian peace.

U.S. NUCLEAR POLICY

U.S. has a new plan to fight North Korea: shoot down Kim Jong Un’s missiles as they launch, but can it work?
Newsweek4/12/18
Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis told Congress Thursday that the U.S. military is developing the technology to shoot down North Korean missiles as they take off.

OPINION AND ANALYSIS

The fine line of meeting US objectives in Syria without risking nuclear war
The HillLouis Rene Beres
4/13/18
The key issues facing the United States in Syria are not narrowly legal ones. Rather, they concern our meeting both military and legal objectives without simultaneously being caught up in a nuclear war.

Why Americans Should Care About North Korea
Inside SourcesMichael Fuchs
4/15/18
There are important reasons that every American should be paying close attention.

As Kim-Trump summit approaches, Syria strikes evoke memories of Gadhafi’s gruesome fate for North Korea
Japan Times4/15/18
Could the decision to strike Syrian targets after a recent chemical weapons attack impact the planned landmark summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un?

A bold and risky gambit: The Trump play on North Korea
The HillElizabeth Sherwood-Randall
4/13/18
While prior policies toward North Korea’s relentless efforts to build nuclear weapons and their delivery systems have not proven successful, there is great risk in an encounter between the American president and the North Korean leader.

Wanted: A Denuclearization Roadmap that Won’t Drive the US and North Korea off a Cliff
38NorthGeorgy Toloraya
4/13/18
As yet, no viable concept for US-DPRK dialogue has emerged, in large part because the Trump administration’s planning is based on four questionable presumptions.

Despite Trump’s theatrics, the Iran deal can be saved
CNN4/13/18
In the theatrical style of a capricious reality-TV host, US President Donald Trump has been building up suspense over an American withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.

Trump’s nuclear threat policy is moving US in the right direction
The HillArthur Rizer and Megan Reiss
4/13/18
This administration’s tenure may be rife with staff turnover, tweetstorms and scandals, but there’s one thing it’s gotten right so far: Its nuclear strategy is a well-reasoned response to the most pressing nuclear threats in the world today.

Competitive strategies against Russia are seductive, dangerous, and unnecessary
War on the RocksJoshua Rovner
4/16/18
Whether by design or by accident, some aspects of the Trump administration’s approach to Russia look like a competitive strategy, especially given Moscow’s response to U.S. modernization efforts.

What the U.S. can do now to protect against Russian cyber warfare advances
Dallas Morning NewsDebra Decker
4/12/18
The Russians are not coming, they are here. And they’re poised for new age warfare that uses weapons of mass disruption rather than destruction.

SPECIAL INTEREST

Australia’s Least Likely Tourist Spot: A Test Site for Atom Bombs
New York Times4/15/18
Maralinga, a barren stretch of land in South Australia’s remote western desert, is the country’s only former nuclear test site open to tourists. And Robin Matthews is Australia’s only nuclear tour guide.

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