Top News: Trump says he’s fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper ABC ‘Squeezing’ N. Korea for nuclear talks could backfire: experts Korea Herald U.S. envoy says it will be hard to re-enter Iran nuclear deal ABC United States Trump says he’s fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper ABC11/9/20 As many had expected, President Donald Trump on Monday said, in a tweet, that he had fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper. ANALYSIS: U.S. military forces in FY 2021: Navy CSISMark Cancian 11/9/20 Unlike the other services, the Navy has sought to significantly expand its force structure. OPINION: Here’s what to expect from Biden on top nuclear weapons issues Bulletin of Atomic ScientistsSara Kutchesfahani 11/9/20 In a statement released over the weekend shortly after news organizations declared he had won, President-elect Joe Biden said, “It’s time for America to unite.” East Asia ‘Squeezing’ N. Korea for nuclear talks could backfire: experts Korea Herald11/10/20 U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s potential national security advisers may recommend ratcheting up pressure on North Korea, but such moves, if pushed to the extreme, could backfire and a new strategy may be necessary. North Korea watches Biden victory with one finger on the missile test trigger Washington Post11/9/20 As world leaders congratulated Joe Biden on his election win over the weekend, a long-standing U.S. adversary remained conspicuously silent. ANALYSIS: How Will North Korea Greet the Biden Administration? The DiplomatLiang Tuang Nah 11/10/20 Pyongyang will want to remind the Biden administration that the North is not to be ignored. The region should brace for destabilizing action. Middle East What are Biden’s options on the Iran nuclear deal? Financial Times11/9/20 On the virtual campaign trail, US Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden promised to rein in tension with Iran with an approach he argued would be instantly distinguishable from Donald Trump’s: Mr Biden’s would be the “smart way”. U.S. envoy says it will be hard to re-enter Iran nuclear deal ABC11/10/20 The U.S. envoy for Iran says the Trump administration will maintain its pressure campaign until the inauguration and anticipates it will be difficult for a future President Joe Biden to bring the U.S. back into the 2015 nuclear agreement. Russia and Europe Joe Biden and Kamala Harris on Russia Russia Matters11/9/20 On Nov. 7, after several tense days of vote counting closely watched by the world, U.S. media declared Joe Biden the winner of the 2020 U.S. presidential election, while anticipating legal challenges from incumbent Donald Trump. Multilateral Arms Control NATO Secretary General stresses importance of nuclear disarmament. NATO11/10/20 Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Tuesday (10 November 2020) said that the world needs to urgently pursue nuclear arms control and disarmament but cautioned that this had to happen in a balanced, reciprocal and verifiable way.