Top News: China challenges U.S. to cut nuclear arsenal to matching level Reuters No big raise for NNSA in House panel’s FY21 spending bill Exchange Monitor Signs increasingly point to sabotage in fiery explosion at Iranian nuclear complex Washington Post United States No big raise for NNSA in House panel’s FY21 spending bill Exchange Monitor7/7/20 A House Appropriations panel on Monday followed through with its promise not to grant a $20-billion budget request for civilian nuclear weapons programs in a fiscal 2021 spending bill that would also forbid preparation for a nuclear yield-test. Upgraded nuclear weapon passes F-15 test Arms Control Association7/6/20 The F-15E Strike Eagle became the first aircraft to be certified to deliver the B61-12 nuclear bomb design, after two test flights at the Nevada Tonopah Test Range in March. East Asia N. Korea not answering call on military hotline: official Korea Herald7/7/20 The military hotline between South and North Korea has remained cut since early June when the North severed all official communication channels between the two countries in protest over launches of anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets by defector groups in Seoul. China challenges U.S. to cut nuclear arsenal to matching level Reuters7/7/20 China would “be happy to” participate in trilateral arms control negotiations with the United States and Russia, but only if the United States were willing to reduce its nuclear arsenal to China’s level, a senior Chinese diplomat said on Wednesday. China calls for dialogue, consultation to resolve differences on implementation of JCPOA Xinhua7/8/20 China hopes all parties concerned can resolve differences on the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) through dialogue and consultation within the framework of the JCPOA Joint Commission, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said Monday. Middle East Europe can save nuclear deal, says Iran minister after plant blast Morning Standard7/6/20 Iran’s foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has said the regime is still committed to the 2015 nuclear deal and called on European nations to “save the agreement”. Signs increasingly point to sabotage in fiery explosion at Iranian nuclear complex Washington Post7/6/20 A massive explosion and fire at a highly sensitive Iranian nuclear facility last week was probably an act of sabotage, intelligence officials and weapons experts said Monday, but analysts were divided over the severity of the damage to Iran’s nuclear program. Multilateral Arms Control Fiji ratifies UN nuclear weapon ban treaty ICAN7/7/20 The Pacific island state of Fiji has become the 39th nation to ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.