Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg again raises the issue of whether the United Kingdom should spend defence funds on full Trident replacement in the midst of other pressing demands during an economic downturn.
Analysis
It’s a no-brainer: ratify the arms control treaty
“In the last few weeks, watching the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearings on New START unfold, I have sometimes felt like shouting out 'Senators, get a world view,' because in the minutiae of 18 public hearings, the bigger picture has been lost.”
Excerpt from article by BASIC Program Director Anne Penketh, written for The Hill's Congress Blog.
Read the full article:
New players in the dispute over Iran’s nuclear program: Brazilian, Turkish, and Iranian objectives
The reasons for the impasse over Iran's nuclear program go beyond current debates on nuclear non-proliferation, sanctions, and threats of military action. This paper reviews the causes of the impasse from a broader perspective and also surveys the motives of Brazil and Turkey to engage in the diplomacy surrounding Iran's nuclear program.
USA is being irrational towards Iran – political analyst
“I think the whole point of what Admiral Mullen said over the weekend was to tell the Iranians that actually the Americans mean business. Otherwise, if you look at the timeline, we are not talking about any kind of military action anytime soon.”
BASIC Program Director Anne Penketh interviewed by RT News. Read more and watch video:
http://rt.com/Top_News/2010-08-02/usa-behaves-irrationally-iran.html?fullstory
“Intervention will harm Iran’s democratic movement”
“The demonization of Iran is such that it appears we are on a one-track punitive response even though few believe it will work but lack the imagination or belief in other options.”
Iran Says It Has Triple Amount of Enriched Uranium Found by UN in April
“It’s a game of threat from the Security Council and then a game of response by Iran, and they’re playing chicken with each other.”
BASIC Executive Director Paul Ingram quoted in Bloomberg News. Read more:
Iran Update: Number 144
- Talks over Iran's nuclear enrichment could resume in the fall
- More sanctions levied on Iran; Tehran vows to continue enriching uranium
- Utility and impacts of sanctions questioned
- Tehran pushes uranium enrichment progress; United States and Russia warn Iran closer to weapons capability
- G8 and D8 summits
- Case of Iranian nuclear scientist adds more controversy to Iran-U.S. relations; Canadian convicted of trying to export dual-use technology to Iran
Getting to Zero History
The growing threat from nuclear weapons has revived the idea of their complete elimination. BASIC has been monitoring the various important developments as the world moves closer to getting to zero nuclear weapons.