Radiation levels were up to 16 times the norm in a nearby town, the national weather service said Tuesday August 13th, after an explosion at a Russian missile testing site on Thursday. Russian authorities recommended residents leave area. The explosion at the Arctic facility on Thursday killed five scientists with Russia’s nuclear agency, which later […]

A landmark nuclear treaty is ending. Is Europe returning to the Cold War era? Germany is aiming to prevent an arms race and keep dialogue channels with Russia open, all while ensuring NATO’s unity. It’s not an easy task. The United States on Friday is set to officially withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) […]

DefenceTalkRussian President Vladimir Putin has said Russia has suspended its obligations under the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, one day after the United States made a similar announcement. Putin met in Moscow on February 2 with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to discuss Russia’s reaction to the long-expected U.S. move. “We […]https://www.defencetalk.com/in-tit-for-tat-move-putin-announces-russian-suspension-of-inf-treaty-72108/

DefenceTalkBy announcing its intent to withdraw from a decades-old nuclear weapons treaty, the United States is targeting Russia, which it says violated the bilateral deal – but also China, which is developing arms that are banned under it. Beijing is not a signatory to the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), so it’s Russia that has […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-nuclear-treaty-ultimatum-about-china-as-much-as-russia-71912/

DefenceTalkSouth Korean President Moon Jae-in has embarked on a “dangerous gamble”, analysts said, after he secured only minimal concessions from Kim Jong Un to reboot the North’s nuclear negotiations with Washington. Moon flew to Pyongyang this week for his third summit with Kim seeking a concrete gesture to rekindle the stalled denuclearisation talks between the […]https://www.defencetalk.com/moons-nuclear-diplomacy-a-dangerous-gamble-analysts-71874/

DefenceTalkIran will relaunch its nuclear program and enrich uranium at a higher level than it has previously if Russia, China, and European powers follow the U.S. example and stop honoring Iran’s 2015 nuclear agreement, Iran’s nuclear agency has warned. “We will not return to previous levels if our counterparts leave the [nuclear deal], but will […]https://www.defencetalk.com/iran-warns-it-will-step-up-nuclear-activities-if-2015-deal-falls-apart-71843/

DefenceTalkThe Nuclear Notebook is researched and written by Hans M. Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project with the Federation of American Scientists, and Robert S. Norris, a senior fellow with the FAS. The Nuclear Notebook column has been published in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists since 1987. This issue’s column examines Pakistan’s nuclear […]https://www.defencetalk.com/pakistani-nuclear-forces-2018-71828/

DefenceTalkThe United States must recapitalize the nuclear triad and accompanying command-and-control system to continue to maintain deterrence into the future, Defense Secretary James N. Mattis wrote in the preface to the Nuclear Posture Review released today. In one of his first acts as president, Donald J. Trump directed Mattis to conduct the review, last conducted […]https://www.defencetalk.com/nuke-review-calls-for-triad-modernization-to-maintain-deterrence-71416/

DefenceTalkThe Nuclear Posture Review released today is a strategy to keep America safe with a deterrent that is modern and credible, Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick M. Shanahan said today in rolling out the strategy. The NPR reaffirms that the fundamental role of U.S. nuclear policy is deterrence and continues the clear commitment to non-proliferation and […]https://www.defencetalk.com/pentagon-releases-new-nuclear-strategy-71411/

DefenceTalkFrance’s Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian on Tuesday encouraged African nations calling for greater autonomy over their security to “go for it”, following the launch of a regional anti-jihad force in the Sahel. France currently has its own a 4,000-strong counter-terror force named Barkhane tackling militants and banditry in West and Central African nations targeted […]https://www.defencetalk.com/france-says-go-ahead-to-african-security-initiatives-70784/