Iran Update: Number 142

Head of Iran's nuclear organization says Tehran still open to fuel swap
Iran hails new centrifuge
United States focuses on Iranian nuclear program's weapons potential
Iranian President assails U.S. President over Nuclear Posture Review
International divisions over sanctions continue
Iran holds international conference on nuclear weapons and nuclear energy
Khatami prevented from visiting Hiroshima

The threat of nuclear terrorism: a race between catastrophe and co-operation

“If there was an incident of nuclear terrorism, what happens thereafter? You can imagine if al Qa’eda attacked. You can see them saying, ‘Actually we’ve got more. We will blast more at a time that we choose.’ Even if it was not true there would be panicked emptying of cities globally. If an incident happened in an American city, the US would be under enormous pressure to use enormous military force to target whoever is connected in any way. You’d have widespread instability and conflict.”

BASIC Research Director Dr. Ian Kearns quoted in The National (Abu Dhabi)

No Easy Options for Obama if Iran Sanctions Fail

“New international sanctions won’t be the ‘crippling’ ones sought by the West. There are likely to be plenty of sanctions-busting operations that reduce their impact.”

BASIC Executive Director Paul Ingram quoted by Reuters via the National Post (Canada).

The nuclear summit papers

The Guardian's Julian Borger blogs on Washington's Nuclear Security Summit and cites BASIC Research Director Dr. Ian Kearns's new paper: Keeping the Lid On: Nuclear Security and the Washington Summit.

Nuclear summit takes aim at unsecured bomb material

“If leaders at the summit get it right, they could render nuclear power safer to use in the fight against climate change, strengthen the non-proliferation regime, and build further international confidence in … nuclear disarmament.”

BASIC Research Director Ian Kearns quoted by Reuters in Sundays Zaman.

Getting to Zero Update

In the run up to the NPT Review Conference (3-28 May), there have been a number of critical developments. Russia and the United States have signed the new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, the Obama Administration just released its Nuclear Posture Review, and Washington is about to host one of its largest summits ever, on nuclear security.

Considering NATO’s Tactical Nuclear Weapons after the US Nuclear Posture Review

Essential questions for NATO as the alliance considers calls for the further drawdown of US tactical weapons in Europe.

Obama cuts US nuclear arsenal – but keeps sights trained on Iran

“Obviously it is to be welcomed that the US will not develop new nuclear warheads despite pressure from the weapons labs, and that President Obama has won the argument over his core policy of limiting the use of nuclear weapons.”

BASIC Program Director Anne Penketh quoted in The Independent on the U.S. Nuclear Posture Review.

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