Nuclear Policy News – September 19, 2018

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Top News

Kim’s Small Steps on Nuclear Program Put Ball in Trump’s Court
Bloomberg

US Officials Express Doubts on Future of Nuke Pact with Russia
Voice of America

Dems introduce bill to ban low-yield nukes
The Hill

East Asia

Chilly South Korean send-off for Moon: ‘Pyongyang summit? I didn’t even know’
Reuters9/18/2018
When South Korean President Moon Jae-in arrived on Tuesday to begin his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, the wildly enthusiastic welcome in the streets of Pyongyang was in stark contrast to his lackluster send-off from Seoul.

North Korea’s Kim agrees to inspections in bid to salvage nuclear talks
Reuters9/18/2018
North Korea said on Wednesday it would permanently abolish its key missile facilities in the presence of foreign experts, the latest gesture by leader Kim Jong Un to revive faltering talks with Washington over his country’s nuclear program.

Kim’s Small Steps on Nuclear Program Put Ball in Trump’s Court
Bloomberg9/18/2018
Kim Jong Un looks like he did just enough on Wednesday to get stalled talks with U.S. President Donald Trump back on track, without coming close to giving up North Korea’s nuclear weapons.

North Korea’s New Promises on Weapons Stop Short of Denuclearization
New York Times9/19/2018
Kim Jong-un, North Korea’s leader, finally committed on Wednesday to some concrete steps toward denuclearization — most notably an offer to “permanently dismantle” facilities that are central to the production of fuel for nuclear warheads — but they fell far short of what American officials have demanded.

Proposed Inter-Korean Projects Could Violate UN, US Sanctions
Voice of America9/19/2018
As South Korean President Moon Jae-in meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for their third summit, there is increasing concern that the inter-Korean economic projects Seoul envisions could violate sanctions and fracture the U.S.-South Korean alliance.

North and South Korea commit to ‘era of no war’
CNN9/19/2018
North Korea said it would close a key missile test facility in the presence of “international experts” and potentially destroy its primary nuclear complex if the United States agrees to corresponding measures, South Korean President Moon Jae-in announced in a joint press conference with Kim Jong Un Wednesday.

Russia/FSU/Europe

US Officials Express Doubts on Future of Nuke Pact with Russia
Voice of America9/18/2018
Russian arms control violations and other malign activities are eroding the confidence and trust required to extend a critical nuclear agreement between Washington and Moscow that expires in 2021, U.S. officials told lawmakers on Tuesday.

Russia to start building two nuclear reactors in Hungary soon: Putin
Reuters9/18/2018
President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that the Russian state atomic energy firm Rosatom would start the construction of two new reactors at the Paks power nuclear plant in Hungary soon.

U.S. Nuclear Policy

Dems introduce bill to ban low-yield nukes
The Hill9/18/2018
A group of House Democrats and a Senate Democrat introduced a bill Tuesday that would ban the Trump administration’s plans for a so-called low-yield nuclear weapon.

Opinion and Analysis

The New Nuclear Normal in North Korea?
The DiplomatAnkit Panda
9/17/2018
North Korean military parades are a grand affair and, in recent years, were of great interest to analysts who studied the short, medium, and intercontinental ballistic missiles on show to gauge its advances in nuclear capability.

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