(published on Nukes of Hazard)
Are the U.S. and South Korea struggling to effectively coordinate policy on North Korea? Last week Kurt Campbell, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, applauded the current level of international cooperation on the North Korea issue, but recent interactions between the U.S. and South Korea paint [...]
Regulation and monitoring of transnational commerce is a tough business, particularly as the global market becomes ever more interconnected. The nonproliferation regime depends on strict regulations, while economic growth (and competitiveness) requires relative lenience. Two recent studies are described below as examples of the attention currently being given to transnational commerce. Each presents a unique [...]
(published on Nukes of Hazard)
As the civilian nuclear cooperation agreement between the United States and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) creeps toward its implementation date, officials in the Obama administration continue to support the arrangement. The deal’s unprecedented provisions require the UAE both to join the IAEA Additional Protocol before any licenses can be issued [...]
(published on Nukes of Hazard)
On August 26, senior Indian nuclear scientist K. Santhanam publicly questioned the success of India’s 1998 nuclear tests. Calling the thermonuclear experiment a “fizzle,” he endorsed the need for new tests. It has been over a month, but the controversy surrounding his comments has yet to subside. The New York [...]
(published on Nukes of Hazard)
On September 21, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak proposed a “grand bargain” with North Korea. Tired of counterproductive step-by-step negotiations with Pyongyang, Lee’s deal was a one-shot process: complete and irreversible denuclearization in exchange for security guarantees and economic aid.
On September 30, the North responded to the offer, calling it “ridiculous.” [...]
Undoubtedly, there is an incredible amount of international nuclear arms control momentum. Nonetheless, many obstacles remain. One of those obstacles is domestic politics in the U.S. Bipartisanship on these issues will be a challenge, but a perfectly achievable one. In fact, arms control issues have a healthy history of bipartisanship in the U.S. Lawmakers in [...]
Some recent reports indicate that U.S.-Russian negotiations for the ‘New START’ agreement have been snagged on some thorny complications. Disagreements over delivery vehicle numbers and conventionally armed long-range systems, as well as the minutiae of counting and inspection rules, could call into question the U.S.-Russian goal of negotiating a follow-on agreement by START’s December 5th [...]
Introduction
There is never much attention directed at one of the elusive beasts of the nuclear policy debate: nonstrategic (tactical) nuclear weapons. Eventually, policy-makers and diplomats will need to officially bring this ‘class’ of nuclear weaponry into the arms control fold. Crafting a comprehensive understanding and practical methodology for doing so will be an unprecedented challenge.
(published on Nukes of Hazard)
Last Friday, the United States circulated a draft resolution on nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament to the UN Security Council. The draft was submitted in anticipation of the September 24 special meeting of the Security Council to be chaired by President Obama.
The draft resolution strongly endorses the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), [...]
Ok, so what exactly is going on with North Korea?
It is often difficult to separate public diplomacy from the real diplomacy. Similarly, it is also difficult to separate hard analysis from catchy headlines. As a ‘rogue’ nation, North Korea is under the constant scrutiny of the media and governments worldwide. Thus, there is an incredible [...]
Thursday, October 22, 2009
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