DefenceTalkIran’s role in flashpoints like Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan is proving a headache for the West as it tries to normalise ties with Tehran without a trade-off on its contested nuclear drive. As the Islamic republic prepares for presidential elections on Friday to choose a successor to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose eight years in office […]https://www.defencetalk.com/iran-nuclear-push-flashpoints-role-has-west-in-a-bind-48098/

DefenceTalkThree of the world’s nuclear powers — China, India and Pakistan — have increased their arsenals over the past year, while the other five have cut their strength or kept it stable, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute said Monday. China now has 250 nuclear warheads against 240 in 2012, while Pakistan has increased its […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-india-pakistan-boost-nuclear-arsenals-study-48008/

DefenceTalkBy Rear Adm. Richard Breckenridge, Director, Undersea Warfare, OPNAV N97 There has been a good deal of conversation recently debating the size of the Navy’s ballistic missile submarine force and need for a nuclear deterrent. Some of the information used in this reporting references SSBN patrol data available to the public that is limited in […]https://www.defencetalk.com/navy-responds-to-debate-over-the-size-of-the-ssbn-force-47810/

DefenceTalkNorth Korea has yet to develop a nuclear warhead small enough to fit on a missile, a senior US official said on Wednesday, contradicting a recent US military intelligence report. The North claimed its third atomic test staged in February involved a “miniaturised and lighter” warhead, prompting speculation that it had acquired the crucial technology […]https://www.defencetalk.com/north-korea-has-no-nuclear-warhead-to-fit-missile-official-47778/

DefenceTalkNorth Korea dramatically escalated its warlike rhetoric on Thursday, warning that it had authorised plans for nuclear strikes on targets in the United States. “The moment of explosion is approaching fast,” the North Korean military said, warning that war could break out “today or tomorrow”. Pyongyang’s latest pronouncement came as Washington scrambled to reinforce its […]https://www.defencetalk.com/north-korea-approves-nuclear-strike-on-united-states-47346/

DefenceTalkUS President Barack Obama will use his State of the Union address on Tuesday to call for dramatic cuts in nuclear arsenals around the world, The New York Times has reported. Quoting unnamed administration officials, the newspaper said late Sunday that in recent months Obama had secured agreement with the US military that its nuclear […]https://www.defencetalk.com/obama-to-propose-deep-nuclear-arms-cuts-report-46743/

DefenceTalkThe Air Force Global Strike Command predicts budget cuts triggered by sequestration will reduce B-52 flying hours by 10 percent and lead to a 20 percent reduction in overall flying hours should the law kick in on March 1, Air Force Lt. Gen. James M. Kowalski said. Kowalski, the commander of Air Force Global Strike […]https://www.defencetalk.com/air-force-nuclear-force-anticipates-budget-constraints-46701/