Nuclear Policy News – September 18, 2018

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Top News

North, South Korean Leaders Hold Third Summit
Voice of America

Haley Says Russia ‘Actively Working’ to Subvert North Korea Sanctions
New York Times

US, Russia remain at ‘impasse’ over Open Skies treaty flights
Defense News

East Asia

North, South Korean Leaders Hold Third Summit
Voice of America9/18/2018
South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his almost 200 member delegation have completed their first day of summit talks in Pyongyang, North Korea. While it’s the third face-to-face meeting between Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this year, this inter-Korean summit also celebrated a number of firsts, according to South Korean spokesman Yoon Young-chan.

In North Korea, Shouts for Reunification and Peace Greet South’s Leader
New York Times9/18/2018
President Moon Jae-in of South Korea was greeted by throngs of North Koreans shouting “Reunification of the fatherland!” as he arrived in the North on Tuesday on a high-stakes mission to persuade its leader, Kim Jong-un, to commit to start dismantling his nuclear weapons program.

North Korea’s Kim says summit with Trump stabilised region, sees more progress
Reuters9/17/2018
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said on Tuesday his “historic” summit with U.S. President Donald Trump in Singapore stabilised regional security, and that he expected further progress at an inter-Korean summit aimed at reviving stalled nuclear diplomacy.

Haley Says Russia ‘Actively Working’ to Subvert North Korea Sanctions
New York Times9/17/2018
The United States ambassador to the United Nations accused Russia on Monday of “actively working to undermine the enforcement” of sanctions aimed at curtailing North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.

How North Korea is mimicking Pak model to normalise its nuclear presence
Economic Times9/17/2018
For seven years, Kim Jong Un has pursued an in-your-face strategy for building his nuclear arsenal: detonating blasts underground and firing missiles into the sky, all to send the message that his country’s nuclear buildup is irreversible.

Middle East

Iran Clashes With U.S. Over Nuclear Deal at IAEA Talks in Vienna
Bloomberg9/17/2018
Top energy officials from the U.S. and Iran clashed on Monday with warnings that international peace is at risk as America’s sanctions noose tightens on the Islamic Republic.

Europe must offset U.S. pullout from nuclear deal: Iran minister
Reuters9/15/2018
Europe should take action to neutralize the consequences of the U.S. decision to quit a 2015 Iran nuclear accord to ensure its own long-term economic interests, Iran’s Foreign Minister said in an interview published on Saturday.

Russia/FSU/Europe

US, Russia remain at ‘impasse’ over Open Skies treaty flights
Defense News9/15/2018
The United States and Russia continue to be at odds with each other over a military verification treaty, to the point where no flights have been conducted in 2018.

Multilateral Arms Control

Army Insists 1,000-Mile Missiles Won’t Breach INF Treaty
Breaking Defense9/17/2018
The Army’s new “strategic fires” missiles won’t violate the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, a service spokesman assured me over the weekend. That’s despite the new chief of Army Futures Command, Gen. John “Mike” Murray, letting slip to Congress that at least one of the technologies the service is studying “could have a range of up to 1,000 nautical miles” (1,151 statue miles). That’s right in the 500-5,500 kilometer range (311 to 3,418 miles) the INF treaty forbids. How is this possible?

Opinion and Analysis

Opinion: Moon Jae-In Can Put U.S.-North Korea Negotiations Back On Track. Here’s How
NPRScott Snyder
9/17/2018
South Korean President Moon Jae-in has doubled down on efforts to prevent U.S.-North Korean negotiations from careening off course. After Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s August visit to Pyongyang was canceled, Moon sent a team of special envoys to the North Korean capital to jump-start the diplomatic process between North Korea and the United States by securing Kim Jong Un’s public reaffirmation of his commitment to denuclearization.

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