I’m in Tehran for BASIC in the middle of the second annual two day international conference on Disarmament and Non-proliferation laid on by IPIS, the Foreign Ministry’s think tank.
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Iran Update: Number 151
- Iran pronounces strong commitment to nuclear program after IAEA releases latest critical report
- Major diplomatic maneuvers remained stalled
- Western countries continue to tighten sanctions
- BASIC at Iran’s second international nuclear disarmament conference, June 12-13
NATO deterrence and defense, and divisions over tactical nuclear weapons, June 8-9 Brussels
Officials have increasingly become concerned that disagreements over U.S. tactical nuclear weapons in Europe could seriously harm Alliance unity, as NATO defense ministers prepare to meet this week. Although not the main issue for discussion at the meeting in Brussels on Wednesday and Thursday, tactical nuclear weapons are up for consideration as part of NATO’s ongoing Deterrence and Defense Posture Review (DDPR).
Getting to Zero Update
NATO proceeded quietly with its Strategic Deterrence and Defense Posture Review, while U.S. and Russian disagreements over missile defense continued. The United States was also conducting a review of nuclear targeting. In the United Kingdom, the “successor” to the Vanguard-class submarine that carries Trident missiles officially entered “Initial Gate,” or the initial design phase.
Apocalypse Never
If you have a nuclear addiction, Doctor Tad Daley has the cure. In his book “Apocalypse Never: Forging the Path to a Nuclear Weapon-Free World,” Daley explains the risks from the most dangerous weapons known to man, describes a nightmare scenario of escalating nuclear non-proliferation, and sets out the steps for their abolition. Why? Because, he argues, nuclear weapons are not needed in the modern world.
U.S. Defense Budget
Going up! But in the elevator of the U.S. defense budget, it’s not hats, coats and lingerie but funding for the nuclear weapons complex. The House Armed Services Committee meets on Wednesday to mark up, or revise, the 2012 defense authorization bill.
GAO reveals challenges ahead for U.S. commitments to NATO’s nuclear deployments
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has warned that the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and the Department of Defense (DOD) could be in danger of failing to meet B61 Life Extension Program (LEP) goals and leave the United States unable to support its tactical nuclear deployments that are assigned to NATO.
Time to slay another anachronism?
This week has already witnessed a great deal of jubilation around the world for the rooting out and killing of Osama bin Laden, with the usual army of armchair commentators giving divergent opinions as the importance this has to the global threat, the project that used to operate under the name ‘War on Terror’, and ongoing operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan.