Top News: U.S. ambassador accuses Germany of ‘undermining’ NATO on nuclear DW Pentagon reluctantly comments on hypersonic weapons after Trump brags about new ‘super duper missile’ The Independent Russia says U.S. cannot be participant to JCPOA Tehran Times United States Pentagon reluctantly comments on hypersonic weapons after Trump brags about new ‘super duper missile’ The Independent5/17/20 The Pentagon has reluctantly commented about its development of hypersonic weapons after Donald Trump bragged about the existence of a new “super duper missile”. OPINION: The coming nuclear menace: Hypersonic missiles CounterpunchKarl Grossman 5/18/20 The United States is seeking to acquire “volumes of hundreds or even thousands” of nuclear-capable hypersonic missiles that are “stealthy” and can fly undetected at 3,600 miles per hour, five times faster than the speed of sound. East Asia ANALYSIS: A closer look at the PLARF’s DF-26 The DiplomatAnkit Panda 5/19/20 Last week, I commented briefly on the pre-launch ambiguity issues associated with the People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force’s (PLARF) dual-capable DF-26. Russia and Europe Russia says U.S. cannot be participant to JCPOA Tehran Times5/18/20 “Annex B of resolution 2231 is a trap for US,” Ulyanov tweeted on Monday. “If US is a JCPOA participant, it cannot question current provisions on arms embargo. If Wash. tries to revise decisions on arms embargo, it becomes yet another (one of many) reasons to reject US ridiculous claims to be a participant.” U.S. may deploy intermediate-and shorter-range missiles in Europe, says Russian diplomat TASS5/18/20 The United States may start deploying land-based intermediate-and shorter-range missiles in Europe after their deployment in the Asia-Pacific region. The doomed treaty: Russia’s position on prolonging New START Real Clear Defense5/19/20 The Donald Trump administration has signaled that it is not interested in prolonging the New START strategic nuclear weapons limitation treaty after its expiration in February 2021. U.S. ambassador accuses Germany of ‘undermining’ NATO on nuclear DW5/17/20 The head of US intelligence and ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, has said that Berlin is not honoring its commitments to its allies. OPINON: U.S. nukes in Poland are a truly bad idea BrookingsSteven Pifer 5/18/20 On May 15, the U.S. Ambassador in Warsaw, Georgette Mosbacher, suggested relocating U.S. nuclear weapons based in Germany to Poland. Multilateral Arms Control OPINION: Will the Trump administration’s accusations doom the nuclear test ban treaty? Bulletin of Atomic ScientistsAndreas Persbo 5/18/20 n April, while most of the world was focused on defeating a devastating viral pandemic, the US State Department quietly released its annual compliance report, describing whether and how the United States and other countries have been abiding by various arms control agreements. Hibakusha now taking anti-nuke push online amid virus outbreak Asahi Shimbun5/18/20 This summer, Hiroshima and Nagasaki will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombings under highly unusual circumstances.