Nuclear Policy News – February 19, 2010

FISSILE MATERIAL
Iran might be seeking to develop nuclear weapons capability, inspectors say
WP by Joby Warrick and Scott Wilson

IAEA Suspects Syrian Nuclear Activity At Bombed Site
Reuters

North Korea Says It Won’t Swap Nuclear Arms for Aid
Bloomberg by Mark Williams

Obama to Seek Ratification of Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
NYT by David E. Sanger

EAST ASIA
1. North Korea Says It Won’t Swap Nuclear Arms for Aid
Bloomberg by Mark Williams
North Korea won’t give up its nuclear deterrent for “economic reward” in the form of food, fuel or loans, the state-run Korea Central News Agency said, amid a diplomatic drive to revive talks on the nation’s weapons.

2. Report: NKorea's Chief Nuclear Envoy to Visit US
AP by Kwang-tae Kim
A top North Korean nuclear envoy could visit the United States soon for bilateral talks, a news report said Friday, amid diplomatic efforts to jump-start stalled talks on ending Pyongyang's nuclear weapons program.

MIDDLE EAST
3. Iran might be seeking to develop nuclear weapons capability, inspectors say
WP by Joby Warrick and Scott Wilson
U.N. nuclear inspectors, citing evidence of an apparently ongoing effort by Iran to obtain new technologies, publicly suggested for the first time Thursday that the country is actively seeking to develop a weapons capability.

4. Russia "very alarmed" at Iranian nuclear stance
Reuters by Conor Sweeney
Russia said on Friday it was "very alarmed" by Iran's failure to cooperate with the IAEA, after the U.N. nuclear agency said it feared Tehran might be working to develop a nuclear-armed missile.

5. Russia urges Iran to be more cooperative with IAEA
Reuters
Russia's Foreign Ministry said on Friday Iran must cooperate more actively with the U.N. nuclear agency to convince the world that its nuclear program is peaceful, Interfax news agency reported.

6. Germany says Iran's defiance merits fresh sanctions
Reuters
Iran's failure to comply with the wishes of the United Nations over its nuclear program is forcing the international community to pursue fresh sanctions against it, the German government said on Friday.

7. Iran leader denies nuclear weapons ambition
AFP by Farhad Pouladi
Iran's supreme leader and armed forces commander-in-chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Friday the country does not believe in and is not seeking atomic weapons, state television reported.

8. IAEA Suspects Syrian Nuclear Activity At Bombed Site
Reuters
Uranium particles found at a Syrian desert complex bombed to ruin by Israel in 2007 point to possible covert nuclear activity at the site, the U.N. atomic watchdog said on Thursday.

SOUTH ASIA
9. Pakistan, U.S. Discuss Nuclear Energy Cooperation, Ambassador Says
GSN
Pakistani Ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqani said his nation's government and the Obama administration are discussing possible civilian nuclear cooperation similar to the U.S.-India deal, the Washington Times reported Tuesday (see GSN, June 23, 2009).

RUSSIA/FSU/EUROPE
10. New START Pact to Include Missile-Test Transparency, Russian Envoy Says
GSN by Elaine M. Grossman
The anticipated strategic nuclear arms-reduction agreement between Russia and the United States will include provisions that allow each side some access to the other's missile-test data, the Kremlin's ambassador to Washington said yesterday (see GSN, Feb. 9).

11. Moscow queries Sofia on US shield
BBC
Russia says it is asking Bulgaria to explain its plans to deploy US air defence missiles on its soil.

MULTILATERAL ARMS CONTROL AND NONPROLIFERATION
12. U.S. wants nuclear commitments at April summit
Reuters by Steve Holland and Caren Bohan
The United States will seek commitments from its allies on securing vulnerable nuclear material within four years at a summit to be held in Washington in April, Vice President Joe Biden said on Thursday.

U.S. NUCLEAR WEAPONS STRATEGY AND POLICY
13. Obama to Seek Ratification of Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
NYT by David E. Sanger
The Obama administration said Thursday that it would ask the Senate to ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, more than a decade after President Bill Clinton failed to convince the treaty’s opponents that the American arsenal could deter adversaries without ever setting off nuclear explosions.

OPINIONS
14. Japan and NATO Are Ready for the U.S. to Reduce Nuclear Weapons
Huffington Post by Alyn Ware
It has been nearly a year since President Obama's now famous Prague speech, announcing America's commitment to a nuclear weapons-free future. A key test of that commitment is at hand: the current U. S. Nuclear Posture Review. The Obama administration might use it to announce a plan for a deeper reduction in nuclear stockpiles, a shift in nuclear policy to "sole purpose" (i.e., retaining nuclear　weapons solely for purposes of deterring others from using such weapons) and begin the process of phasing out nuclear deterrence itself.