Top News Pompeo Arrives in North Korea to Try to Curb Its Nuclear Program The New York Times Pompeo meets North Koreans, hopes to ‘fill in’ details on denuclearization Reuters Moscow and Beijing want to save Iran nuclear deal: RIA cites Russian foreign minister Reuters Trump, Putin may discuss extending arms control treaty Axios EAST ASIA Pompeo Arrives in North Korea to Try to Curb Its Nuclear Program The New York Times7/6/18 Secretary of State Mike Pompeo landed in North Korea on Friday for a series of talks aimed at persuading the country to give up its nuclear and ballistic missile programs — a mission that in his conversations with at least two outside experts he has said was doomed from the outset. North Korea Submarine Development Signals Increased Nuclear Threat Wall Street Journal7/6/18 North Korea is thought to be developing a new submarine capable of launching nuclear-armed ballistic missiles, a senior South Korean lawmaker said, signaling an increased threat to U.S. and allied forces while raising doubts about the regime’s pledges to disarm. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo vows to get details of nuke commitment on North Korea visit USA Today7/6/18 Secretary of State Mike Pompeo began his first trip to Pyongyang since President Donald Trump’s summit with leader Kim Jong Un last month with a vow to nail down the specifics of Kim’s commitments on denuclearization. Pompeo Visits North Korea Amid Doubts Pyongyang Will Denuclearize NPR7/6/18 Steve Inskeep talks to Sue Mi Terry, Korea analyst for the Center for Strategic and International Studies, about the Secretary of State’s trip to North Korea to continue talks about denuclearization. U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo arrives in North Korea Reuters7/6/18 U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in Pyongyang on Friday for talks with officials on North Korea’s denuclearisation, according to a pool report by reporters travelling with him. Pompeo meets North Koreans, hopes to ‘fill in’ details on denuclearization Reuters7/5/18 U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met North Korean officials in Pyongyang on Friday, hoping to “fill in” details on how to dismantle the North’s nuclear program and recover the remains of U.S. troops missing from the Korean War. As Pompeo heads to North Korea, U.S. State Department denies softening Reuters7/5/18 The State Department on Thursday denied that the United States had softened its approach toward North Korea’s denuclearization, as U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo heads to Pyongyang hoping to hammer out a roadmap for its nuclear disarmament. Pompeo heads to North Korea to press Kim on nuclear disarmament Los Angeles Times7/5/18 Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo was traveling to North Korea on Thursday to press ruler Kim Jong Un on his stated willingness to disarm his nuclear arsenal, amid reports that Kim actually is expanding the program. Japan nuclear agency urges measures to cut plutonium stocks ABC News7/5/18 Japan’s nuclear policy-setting body on Thursday endorsed a call for stricter management of its fuel recycling program to reduce its plutonium stockpile. MIDDLE EAST Moscow and Beijing want to save Iran nuclear deal: RIA cites Russian foreign minister Reuters7/6/18 Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday that Russia and China were interested in saving the Iran nuclear deal, the RIA news agency reported. With US out, those backing Iran nuclear deal meet in Vienna ABC News7/6/18 Top diplomats from Iran and five world powers sat down in Vienna on Friday to hash out what steps are needed to preserve the nuclear deal with Tehran following the withdrawal of the United States. RUSSIA/FSU/EUROPE Trump and Putin Will Meet One-on-One in Finland, Officials Say The New York Times7/5/18 President Trump will speak one-on-one with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia this month when they meet in Helsinki, Finland, the administration confirmed Thursday, injecting an element of unpredictability and mystery into an encounter that White House advisers describe as a chance to reset a tense relationship. DONALD TRUMP’S PUTIN SUMMIT COULD BE ‘CATASTROPHIC,’ JUST LIKE NORTH KOREA MEETING, SAYS CONSERVATIVE GEORGE WILL Newsweek7/5/18 President Donald Trump’s upcoming meeting with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin could have “catastrophic” consequences should the summit go as poorly as Trump’s recent sit-down with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, said Trump critic and longtime conservative commentator George Will on Wednesday. Trump, Putin may discuss extending arms control treaty Axios7/5/18 President Trump and Russian President Vladmir Putin may discuss extending the New START arms control treaty between the United States and Russia for another five years during their upcoming one-on-one meeting this month, according to a senior administration official. SOUTH ASIA ‘Nukes not military but political weapons’ The Times of India7/6/18 Lt Gen Prakash Menon (retd) said on Thursday that India is a reluctant nuclear power and “we believe the ability to survive is the fundamental ability of growth”. OPINION AND ANALYSIS Fear over nuclear war runs high 50 years after nonproliferation treaty The HillGeorge A. Lopez 7/5/18 Hitting 50 years of age can be a poignant moment for most individuals. For an international treaty, the half century mark would appear less angst generating, maybe even insignificant. Not so for the 50th anniversary of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty of 1968 this month. This Is How North Korea Will Develop A Hydrogen Bomb ForbesEthan Siegel 7/5/18 There are few things in this world that have the capability to destroy as much as a nuclear bomb. While history looks back on the 1945 bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki with horror, it’s vital to remember that, in terms of energy yields, these fission bombs were less than 0.1% as powerful as modern hydrogen bombs. Why India’s Nuclear Security Challenge Demands Attention The DiplomatRajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan 7/5/18 Nuclear security has been a key issue for India for several decades, well before the world started paying greater attention to the subject after the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States. Given the kind of neighborhood that India is in, securing nuclear and radiological materials from a range of internal and external challenges has remained a major preoccupation. Iran — saving the nuclear deal The Express TribuneEditorial 7/5/18 To little fanfare Iranian President Rouhani has visited Switzerland and Austria as he seeks to shore up the 2015 nuclear deal which is today endangered by the American pullout and the imminent imposition of sanctions on the Islamic republic that begin on 6th August. Why the Civil Nuclear Trap Is Part and Parcel of the Belt and Road Strategy The DiplomatSam Reynolds 7/5/18 Civil nuclear energy presents grave pitfalls in terms of cost, innovation and security that BRI countries cannot and should not afford.