DefenceTalkThe United States intends for its nuclear arsenal to deter “all forms of strategic attack,” including those involving conventional weapons, the Pentagon said in a strategy document released on Thursday. “This includes nuclear employment of any scale, and it includes high-consequence attacks of a strategic nature that use non-nuclear means,” a senior defense official told […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-says-atomic-arms-to-deter-conventional-as-well-as-nuclear-attacks-79546/

DefenceTalkThe UN’s nuclear watchdog will this week carry out an “independent verification” of Russian allegations concerning the production of so-called dirty bombs at two sites in Ukraine, it said on Thursday. Russia has accused Ukraine of preparing to use such a weapon against Moscow’s troops, but Kyiv suspects Russia might itself use a dirty bomb […]https://www.defencetalk.com/iaea-to-conduct-independent-probe-into-ukraine-dirty-bomb-allegations-79559/

DefenceTalkNATO on Monday launched its regular nuclear deterrence drills in western Europe, after tensions soared with Russia over President Vladimir Putin’s veiled threats in the face of setbacks in Ukraine. The 30-nation alliance has stressed that the “routine, recurring training activity” — which runs until October 30 — was planned before Moscow invaded Ukraine and […]https://www.defencetalk.com/nato-holds-routine-nuclear-drill-amid-russia-tensions-79527/

DefenceTalkDoomsday could start with a football — the so-called “nuclear football” as the attache case carried wherever the US president goes is popularly known. The rather awkwardly stuffed black bag doesn’t look like much, the only clue to its importance being that it never leaves the hand of a uniformed military aide. But inside are […]https://www.defencetalk.com/from-football-to-biscuits-how-biden-would-launch-nukes-79497/

DefenceTalkPolish officials said Friday they had distributed anti-radiation tablets to fire departments nationwide in case of exposure triggered by the war in neighboring Ukraine, while denying there was cause for alarm. The move came in response to fighting around Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant — Europe’s largest — which has raised fears of a nuclear […]https://www.defencetalk.com/poland-preps-anti-radiation-tablets-over-nuclear-threat-79452/

DefenceTalkNorth Korea’s Kim Jong Un declaring he will never give up his nukes and enshrining a “first-strike” doctrine into law are part of a worrying new escalatory dynamic in nuclear weapons policy around the world, analysts say. Since the height of the Cold War, nuclear arsenals have served primarily as a deterrent to be used […]https://www.defencetalk.com/nuclear-shift-north-korean-nuke-law-reflects-global-trend-79432/

DefenceTalkFrench state energy firm EDF said Thursday that lower electricity production due to stoppages of nuclear reactors would sap its operating profit by 29 billion euros ($29 billion) in 2022, worse than previously forecast. Almost half of France’s reactor fleet is offline for maintenance pushed back during the coronavirus crisis, or because of problems with […]https://www.defencetalk.com/frances-edf-faces-29-bn-euro-hit-from-nuclear-woes-79406/

DefenceTalkGermany will seek talks with Switzerland on nuclear waste storage, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Monday, as Berlin warned that a Swiss facility close to the border would “heavily burden” communities on the other side. Germany would have to discuss the decision “through the usual channels with all those responsible in the Swiss government”, Scholz said […]https://www.defencetalk.com/germany-seeks-swiss-nuclear-waste-talks-after-storage-decision-79391/

DefenceTalkNorth Korea has passed a law declaring its readiness to launch preventive nuclear strikes, including in the face of conventional attacks, state media said Friday. The move effectively eliminates the possibility of denuclearisation talks, with leader Kim Jong Un saying the country’s status as a nuclear state was now “irreversible”. The announcement comes at a […]https://www.defencetalk.com/north-korea-law-makes-nuclear-program-irreversible-79372/

DefenceTalkThe departure of a shipment of reprocessed nuclear fuel from France to Japan has been delayed due to the breakdown of loading equipment, a French nuclear technology company announced Wednesday. The setback came as environmental campaigners denounced the practice of transporting such highly radioactive materials. The shipment arrived on two separate lorries under heavy security […]https://www.defencetalk.com/france-to-send-latest-nuclear-shipment-to-japan-79352/