Nuclear Policy News – January 11, 2019

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North Korea’s Kim looking to ‘achieve results’ with Trump in 2nd summit amid nuclear standoff
Associated Press

North Korea’s Kim appears to have a big goal: Winning Belt and Road investments from Beijing
CNBC

France tells Iran to stop ballistic missile work designed for nuclear weapons
Reuters

EXCLUSIVE: Pompeo announces international summit on Iran
Fox News

 

East Asia

North Korea’s Kim appears to have a big goal: Winning Belt and Road investments from Beijing
CNBC1/11/19
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s three-day meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing this week likely focused on a range of issues including economic ties, nuclear talks and the possibility of a second summit between Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump. But there’s one topic that likely wasn’t officially discussed despite its importance to North Korea’s future: The prospect of Pyongyang joining China’s continent-spanning Belt and Road Initiative, a project aiming to link more than 60 countries in Asia, Europe, Africa and the Middle East through overland and maritime routes.

North Korea’s Kim looking to ‘achieve results’ with Trump in 2nd summit amid nuclear standoff
Associated Press1/10/18
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has reportedly told the leader of his only major ally, China, that he wants to “achieve results” on the nuclear standoff on the Korean Peninsula during a second summit with U.S. President Donald Trump. The comments, contained in Chinese state media reports Thursday, came a day after Kim left Beijing on his special armored train after a two-day visit to the Chinese capital.

UN expert: N.Korea nuclear talks should include human rights
Associated Press1/11/19
A U.N. rights investigator said Friday that negotiations on North Korea’s denuclearization must also include its abysmal human rights situation. Tomas Ojea Quintana told reporters that he wants North Korea to accept his call for a dialogue on its rights conditions. He said North Korea has not allowed him to visit despite his requests over the past three years for cooperation.

Middle East

France tells Iran to stop ballistic missile work designed for nuclear weapons
Reuters1/11/19
France on Friday called on Iran to immediately stop all activities linked to ballistic missiles that could carry nuclear weapons after Tehran said it could put two satellites into orbit in the coming weeks. “France recalls that the Iranian missile program is not conform with U.N. Security Council Resolution 2231,” Foreign ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll told reporters in a daily briefing.

EXCLUSIVE: Pompeo announces international summit on Iran
Fox News1/11/19
The United States will host an international summit next month to promote stability and freedom in the Middle East, focusing on Iran’s regional influence, said Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, in an exclusive Fox News interview, while traveling in the Middle East. “We’ll bring together dozens of countries from all around the world,” said Pompeo, announcing the February 13-14 event in Poland.

Iran’s Crude Exports Stay Subdued in Jan Despite Waivers: Sources
U.S. News and World Report1/10/19
Iran will see its crude exports severely curtailed for a third month in January as it is struggling to find new buyers amid U.S. sanctions even though its traditional customers secured waivers, according to tanker data and industry sources. Iran’s crude exports in November plummeted as sanctions kicked in to below 1 million barrels per day (bpd) from regular sales of 2.5 million bpd in April, taking them back to where they stood during previous sanctions in 2012-2016.

Russia/FSU/Europe

Review or ‘cover up’? Mystery as Australia nuclear weapons tests files withdrawn
CNN1/11/19
More than 65 years since the UK began conducting secret nuclear weapons testing in the Australian Outback, scores of files about the program have been withdrawn from the country’s National Archives without explanation. The unannounced move came as a shock to many researchers and historians who rely on the files and have been campaigning to unseal the small number which remain classified.

South Asia

India, Russia discuss common approach to Iranian nuclear issue
Economic Times1/10/19
India and Russia reiterated common approaches to current global and regional problems, including the implementation of the JCPOA to resolve the situation around the Iranian nuclear programme. This was the theme when Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Serge Ryabkov and Foreign Secretary V K Gokhale here on Wednesday.

Opinion and Analysis

Why Iran Waits
Foreign AffairsHenry Rome
1/10/19
Iran has continued to comply with the restrictions on its nuclear program under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which was implemented three years ago this month. The Iranian leadership, through its complex and opaque national security decision-making process, has apparently conducted a cost-benefit analysis and decided to stay. The decision is likely based primarily on economics, but is also driven by strategic considerations and the diplomatic benefits of staying in the deal.

This is not a drill: Lessons from the false Hawaiian missile alert
Bulletin of the Atomic ScientistsKristyn Karl and Ashley Lytle
1/10/19
With the one-year anniversary rapidly approaching, we should treat the Hawaiian incident as a cautionary tale. Despite the initial, often fatalistic, response to nuclear threat, there are clear steps one can take to greatly increase odds of survival: “Get Inside, Stay Inside, Stay Tuned.” Better education on and preparedness for a possible nuclear attack is critical to improved safety and survival for citizens.

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