Top News Macron seeks leading role in post-brexit E.U. nuclear strategy New York Times MDA taps industry to build interceptor to defend against hypersonic threats Defense News ANALYSIS: Mapping the fault lines for the 2020 NPT Review Conference European Leadership Network United States MDA taps industry to build interceptor to defend against hypersonic threats Defense News2/6/20 The U.S. Missile Defense Agency is tapping industry to design and build an interceptor capable of defending against regional hypersonic weapons threats, releasing a draft request for proposals to build prototypes. ANALYSIS: Trump’s bid to go big on nuclear arms looks like a fizzle Defense OneSteven Pifer 2/5/20 The 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces, or INF, Treaty is dead, and the 2010 New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or New START, has entered its last year, with the Trump administration thus far unready to accept Moscow’s offer to extend it. East Asia Presidential secretary visits U.S. amid impasse in nuclear talks Yonhap News Agency2/6/20 A presidential secretary recently visited the United States to discuss ways to resume the stalled nuclear talks between Washington and Pyongyang, sources said Thursday. Middle East Iran and North Korea are building new, better submarines to counter enemies at sea Newsweek2/6/20 Iran and North Korea are updating their aging fleets and building new and more advanced submarines in order to counter their adversaries in open waters. Russia/Europe Macron seeks leading role in post-brexit E.U. nuclear strategy New York Times2/7/20 French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday advocated a more coordinated European Union defense strategy in which France, the bloc’s only post-Brexit nuclear power, and its arsenal would hold a central role. Russia’s Strategic Missile Force employs Yars ICBMs in large-scale drills in Siberia TASS2/6/20 Over 2,500 troops are involved in a tactical exercise with Yars mobile intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) systems of the Novosibirsk missile formation, Russia’s Defense Ministry reported on Thursday. ANALYSIS: Russia’s church blesses nuclear weapons, some clergy want to stop Vice2/6/20 Parts of the Russian Orthodox Church want to stop blessing weapons of mass destruction. South Asia India to test Nirbhay cruise missile with indigenous propulsion system The Diplomat2/7/20 The first developmental trial of a Nirbhay cruise missile fitted with an indigenous propulsion system is expected to take place in April. Multilateral Arms Control ANALYSIS: Mapping the fault lines for the 2020 NPT Review Conference European Leadership NetworkEdward Ifft 2/6/20 The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) will undergo its five-year checkup in New York this year, from 27 April to 22 May.