Top News Trump ‘prepared’ to handle responsibility of launching nukes RT Will Arms Control Foes Take Aim at Another Treaty? The New York Times Thule Air Base: inside the US’s northernmost military base in Greenland Air Force Technology U.S. Nuclear News Trump ‘prepared’ to handle responsibility of launching nukes RT6/5/2019 If and when the time comes, Donald Trump is prepared for the “tremendous responsibility” of pressing the nuclear button, the US president has said as Washington locks horns with a growing number of states. Trump administration approved 2 nuclear deals to Saudi Arabia after Khashoggi was killed in Istanbul ABC News6/5/2019 The Trump administration approved two nuclear technology transfers to Saudi Arabia after the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, according to Democratic lawmakers who reviewed documents related to the deals, which they oppose. Coming Soon to the US Army: Combat-capable hypersonic and laser weapons Defense News6/4/2019 The Army will field a hypersonic weapon and a directed energy weapon in less than four years and the Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office (RCCTO) is leading the charge, according to its director. East Asia North Korea’s 2017 Nuclear Test Estimated to Be 16 Times Stronger Than the Bomb Dropped on Hiroshima Gizmodo6/4/2019 An updated estimate shows the September 2017 nuclear test by North Korea was equivalent to 250 kilotons of TNT—an explosive yield 16 times greater than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima during the Second World War. The explosion was also an order of magnitude stronger than the country’s previous five tests. Exclusive: U.N. bid to curb North Korean missile tests, revive air traffic, delayed amid U.S. concerns – sources Reuters6/3/2019 A U.N. agency’s bid to curb North Korea’s missile program with an airspace safety audit and at the same time revive its air traffic has been delayed amid U.S. concerns that it may breach U.N. sanctions, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. Russia/FSU/Europe Russia Might Take Typhoon-Class Submarine and Make it a 200 Missile Monster The National InterestSebastien Roblin 6/5/2019 The Typhoon ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), famously featured in the film Hunt for Red October, are by far the biggest and most expensive submarines ever built. Cruise-missile-armed Typhoons would give Russia direct analogs of the United States’ four Ohio-class cruise missile submarines (SSGNs), which had their launch tubes for nuclear-armed ballistic missiles replaced with vertical launch systems for 154 conventionally-armed Tomahawk cruise missiles. US NATO ambassador says Turkey must back down on Russian missile purchase CNBC6/4/2019 U.S. officials see Ankara’s purchase of the missile system as a pivot toward warmer ties with Moscow. Turkey’s integration of the Russian S-400 system is viewed as a direct threat to the security of Lockheed Martin’s F-35 fighter jet program which Turkey is a part of. Opinion/Analysis/Commentary Will Arms Control Foes Take Aim at Another Treaty? The New York TimesCarol Giacomo 6/4/2019 With the United States, Russia and China pouring billions of dollars into modernizing their military arsenals, the risk of a new arms race grows while the arms control system that has held off the threat of nuclear annihilation grows weaker. The US Military Is Preparing for a New War The NationMichael T. Klare 6/5/2019 After years of a fruitless War on Terror, the Pentagon is turning its focus to China and Russia. Special Interest Thule Air Base: inside the US’s northernmost military base in Greenland Air Force TechnologyTalal Husseini 6/5/2019 The US’s northernmost military base is the Thule Air Base in Greenland, which was strategically, yet illicitly, established to offer the Danish colonies protection from Germany in World War II. Today, the base is used for monitoring space for defence purposes.