Top News: Russia denies nuclear incident after international body detects isotopes Reuters U.S. debates resuming nuclear tests on American soil Washington Times Iran investigates large explosion near key military site Wall Street Journal United States U.S. debates resuming nuclear tests on American soil Washington Times6/28/20 Sen. Tom Cotton, Arkansas Republican, echoed the concerns of a number of private China hawks that Beijing was expanding, upgrading and testing its nuclear weaponry without constraint. U.S. Defense Secretary seeks to reassure NATO allies after troop withdrawal from Germany Time6/26/20 U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Friday sought to reassure allies at NATO that Washington will consult them on any future troop movements, after President Donald Trump surprised partners at the military alliance by announcing the withdrawal of thousands of personnel from Germany. East Asia ANALYSIS: “Kim Jong Un and the Bomb”: how to live with a nuclear North Korea NK NewsOliver Hotham, Ankit Panda 6/25/20 Negotiations between the DPRK and the U.S. have gone nowhere for over a year. Pyongyang is ramping up tensions with Seoul. OPINION: Beyond ‘love,’ Trump has little to show from N. Korea talks Associated PressDeb Riechmann 6/29/20 Hours after an astonishing summit with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, President Donald Trump boldly declared a breakthrough. “There is no longer a Nuclear Threat from North Korea,” he tweeted. Middle East OPINION: The clock Is ticking on the next Iran nuclear crisis Real Clear DefenseJohn Hannah 6/29/20 In early June, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) released two reports on the Iranian nuclear program. They make for worrisome reading. Iran investigates large explosion near key military site Wall Street Journal6/25/20 Iranian authorities said they were investigating an explosion in the early hours of Friday at a Defense Ministry facility east of Tehran, near a site that has been crucial for Iran’s development of missiles and munitions. Russia and Europe Russia’s priority is to involve UK, France in future nuclear arms control talks Tass6/26/20 The two states are the US closest NATO allies that possess nuclear weapons, the senior diplomat explained. Russia, US agree to meeting of experts on military doctrines Tass6/25/20 Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also pointed towards the issue of verification and transparency, saying that Russia and the US have yet reconcile their approaches and to find the way to conjugate them. Russia denies nuclear incident after international body detects isotopes Reuters6/29/20 Russia said on Monday it had detected no sign of a radiation emergency, after an international body reported last week that sensors in Stockholm had picked up tiny amounts of unusual radioactive isotopes produced by nuclear fission. ANALYSIS: Russia’s new nuclear strategy: unanswered questions RUSIMaxim Starchak 6/26/20 Russia’s newly released nuclear strategy document has done little to clarify the country’s policies, and raises more questions than it answers.