weapons and war « nuclear-news

Obama to make further cuts in nuclear weapons

White House considers nuclear-arms cuts, Philly.com, By Robert Burns 3 July 12 WASHINGTON – The Obama administration is moving toward decisions that would further cut the number of U.S. nuclear weapons, possibly to between 1,000 and 1,100, reflecting new thinking on the role of nuclear weapons in an age of terror, current and former officials say.
The reductions under consideration are in line with President Obama’s vision of trimming the nation’s nuclear arsenal without harming national security in the short term, and in the longer term, eliminating nuclear weapons.

The White House has yet to announce any plan for reducing the number of nuclear weapons, beyond commitments made in the recently completed New Start treaty with Russia, which obliges both countries to reduce their number of deployed long-range nuclear warheads to no more than 1,550 by 2018. As of March 1, Russia had dropped its total to 1,492
and the U.S. stood at 1,737……http://www.philly.com/philly/news/nation_world/161304925.html

July 5, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

North Korea’s former leader wanted mass production of nuclear bombs

Kim Jong-il ordered mass production of uranium bombs: papers http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/northkorea/2012/07/02/16/0401000000AEN20120702003200315F.HTML TOKYO, July 2 (Yonhap) — North Korea’s late leader Kim Jong-il had ordered his officials to mass-produce nuclear bombs by using highly enriched uranium, Japanese news reports said Monday, citing an internal document obtained from Pyongyang. Continue reading →

July 2, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | North Korea, weapons and war | Leave a comment

New Zealand to do limited testing of soldiers for depleted uranum poisoning

Kiwi soldiers tested for uranium poisoning, TVNZ June 25, 2012 Soldiers returning from Afghanistan are having urine tests to check if they have absorbed radioactivity from American depleted uranium munitions…. The issue will come before Parliament on Wednesday during the first reading of the Depleted Uranium (Prohibition) Bill, backed by Labour MP Phil Twyford. Continue reading →

June 25, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | depleted uranium, New Zealand, Uranium | Leave a comment

Japanese government’s snide move towards nuclear weapons

Japan’s nuclear ambition, Tokyo has only to strike out controversial phrase Korea Times, 23 June 12, The world has long regarded Japan as a virtual nuclear power. On Wednesday, Tokyo took its first step toward becoming a “real” one.

The upper house of Japan’s Diet passed an amendment to the country’s Atomic Energy Basic Law to allow the use of nuclear power for “national security,” according to the Tokyo Shimbun. The addition of these controversial words was made so furtively that not only the
Japanese public but even many Lower House lawmakers didn’t know about
it, other reports say.

Despite denials from the Japanese government, there should be little doubt about Tokyo’s intention — nuclear armament. The stealthy way the Japanese parliament handled the matter proves it. Continue reading →

June 23, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Japan, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Hawkish American want preparation for military attack on Iran’s nukes

As nuclear talks fail, U.S. experts urge Obama to weigh military option on Iran http://www.haaretz.com/blogs/focus-u-s-a/as-nuclear-talks-fail-u-s-experts-urge-obama-to-weigh-military-option-on-iran.premium-1.440077 Senators send letter to U.S. President, advising cut of diplomatic push to end standoff; American ex-official: We need the third track, a visible preparations for a military option. By Natasha Mozgovaya 21.06.12

American officials and experts urged U.S. President Barack Obama this week to take a tougher stance on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program, with some advising the administration to provide Israel with the arms needed for an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities. -……..subscription only

June 22, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

USA and Israel launch ‘cyberwar’ against Iran’s nukes

Iran Says U.S., Allies Launched ‘Massive Cyber Attack’ Against Nuclear Facilities, NPR 21 June 12, Iran’s intelligence minister says his country has uncovered a “massive cyber attack” he says was launched by the United States, England and Israel to coincide with nuclear negotiations that happened in Moscow. Continue reading →

June 22, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Iran, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee calls for cuts in nuclear weapons spending

Senator Urges Bigger Cuts to Nuclear Arsenal, NYT By THOM SHANKER, June 14, 2012 WASHINGTON — The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee called on the Obama administration on Thursday to seek cuts in nuclear warheads far beyond the requirements of current treaties. The chairman, Senator Carl Levin, Democrat of Michigan, said the administration “should consider going far lower” than the warhead caps set by the New Start agreement withRussia, to bring the nation’s arsenal in line with a diminished nuclear threat and tighter military budgets. Continue reading →

June 15, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

USA govt understates the cost of its nuclear weapons arsenal

Study: Government Low-Balls Cost of Nuclear Fleet, USA News, June 5, 2012 The federal government is low when calculating the amount it spends on the U.S. nuclear weapons arsenal, says a new report, and several longtime atomic arms analysts say government officials have no clue how much the world’s most lethal weapons really cost.

The Stimson Center released a study Tuesday that concludes Washington will spend between $352 billion to $392 billion over the next decade to modernize its nuclear fleet. The think tank’s researchers dove into Pentagon budget documents to conclude the Defense Department pegs the same costs between $221 billion to $244 billion.

“Official estimates [rely] on a narrow definition of the nuclear enterprise, or even of strategic nuclear offensive forces, understate the actual costs the United States spends on nuclear weapons without settling once and for all what is the single right cost of the nuclear
enterprise,” states the report…… http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/dotmil/2012/06/05/study-government-low-balls-cost-of-nuclear-fleet

June 6, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Nuclear capable missile tested by Pakistan

Pakistan tests nuclear-capable Hatf VII cruise missile By: Online | June 05, 2012 Pakistan on Tuesday test-fired another medium range cruise missile Hatf-VII (Babur) having a range of 700 km, the third successful test in a week. “It’s a multi tube, indigenously developed cruise missile Hatf-VII having a range of 700 kms,” ISPR said in a statement. “Babur Cruise Missile is a low flying, terrain hugging missile with high maneuverability, pin point accuracy and radar avoidance features. It can carry both nuclear and conventional
warheads and has stealth capabilities,” ISPR says. …..
http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/national/05-Jun-2012/pakistan-tests-nuclear-capable-hatf-vii-cruise-missile

June 6, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Pakistan, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Fewer nuclear weapons, but still great nuclear danger

Budget woes curb arms trade but nuclear threat strong: SIPRI JUNE 05, 2012 RECORDER REPORT World military spending failed to rise last year for the first time since 1998 in what could herald a major trend break, but the global nuclear threat remains strong, think tank SIPRI said Monday.

As the global economic crisis cuts into defence spending, conflicts around the world are also becoming smaller, shorter and less deadly, and the number of wars between states are at historically low levels, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute said. …. Nuclear arsenals declined last year, the report said, as the United States and Russia further reduced their inventories of strategic nuclear weapons.

At the start of 2012, eight countries – Britain, China, India, Israel, France, Pakistan, Russia and the United States – held some 19,000 nuclear warheads, compared to 20,530 at the start of 2011, it said. However, long-term modernisation programmes under way in nuclear
states “suggest that nuclear weapons are still a currency of international status and power,” SIPRI researcher Shannon Kile said.

“In spite of the world’s revived interest in disarmament efforts, none of the nuclear weapon-possessing states show more than a rhetorical willingness to give up their nuclear arsenals just yet,” he said. The report noted that Iran and Syria came under intensified scrutiny in 2011 for allegedly concealing military nuclear activities. …

June 6, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Nuclear weapons for Israel submarines

Israeli subs can carry nuclear weapons’ By BENJAMIN WEINTHAL, JERUSALEM POST 06/04/2012 ‘Der Spiegel’ claims that German-supplied Dolphin fleet has second-strike capability.BERLIN – The German magazine Der Spiegel reported on Sunday that German-manufactured Dolphin-class submarines delivered to the Israel
Navy can be equipped with technology for carrying nuclear warheads.

Over the years there has been a swirl of German media reports about the nuclear capability of Israel’s submarines, ever since the shipment of the first Dolphins arrived in the late 1990s.

In an article in Der Spiegel titled “Made in Germany,” experts from Israel and Germany confirmed that the “ships are armed with nuclear warheads. And Berlin has long been aware of that.”…… http://www.jpost.com/International/Article.aspx?id=272562

June 4, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Israel, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Burma gives up nuclear ambitions

Myanmar abandons nuclear project, Today Online, Jun 03, 2012 SINGAPORE – Myanmar has abandoned research on a nuclear programme that never progressed very far, and has stepped back from close military and political ties with North Korea, said Myanmar’s defence minister yesterday.

News reports two years ago indicated Myanmar obtained technology for enriching uranium from North Korea along with parts for a nuclear weapons programme. The reports were based on interviews with an army major who was involved in the programme and defected with files he said documented the project….. http://www.todayonline.com/World/EDC120603-0000009/Myanmar-abandons-nuclear-project

June 4, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Burma, weapons and war | Leave a comment

China not such a nuclear threat to USA

China nuclear no ‘direct threat’: US commander http://www.brecorder.com/general-news/172/1195339/, MAY 31, 2012 China’s nuclear weapons do not pose a “direct threat” to the United States, the man in charge of America’s arsenal said Wednesday in calling for greater dialogue with the Chinese military. “We would like to have routine contact and conversations with China’s military,” said General Robert Kehler, head of Strategic Command or STRATCOM, which oversees America’s nuclear deterrence operations around the globe.

“We think there would be tremendous benefit to that in both China and the United States, in particular to help us avoid some misunderstanding or some tension in the future.” Kehler said that although the United States and Russia account for roughly 90 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons, dealing with the Chinese on the matter will become increasingly important. “I do not see the Chinese strategic deterrent as a direct threat to the United States. We are not enemies,” he said. “Could it be? I suppose if we were enemies it could be and therefore we at least have to be aware of that.”

June 2, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | China, politics international, weapons and war | Leave a comment

NATO should stop kow towing to USA militarism

New thinking is needed on Nato http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/may/20/new-thinking-needed-nato guardian.co.uk, Rae Street 20 May 2012 As Nato meets in Chicago , it is high time our politicians started to take a hard look at the organisation. They need to stop kowtowing to a US agenda of global military dominance through Nato and realise that Nato is not bringing peace and security, but dangerous instability. Seumas Milne (Comment, 16 May) outlined the dangers from wars of intervention; Malalai Joya described the suffering brought to Afghanistan by the occupying forces (Our Chicago resistance, 17 May).

But the dangers are even wider. Nato continues to assert it needsnuclear weapons for defence and still holds a policy of first use of nuclear weapons. At the Lisbon summit Nato leaders reaffirmed their addiction to nuclear weapons, ignoring the nuclear non-proliferation treaty which states that nuclear weapon states should disarm “in good faith”.

Trident is integrated into Nato and there are five nuclear-armed Nato bases in Europe from Belgium to Turkey. Nato is building its missile-defence programme in European bases – aimed at Russia? Outside Europe, Nato is expanding its influence from the Mediterranean to the Pacific.

Nato brings with it enormous cost. Eisenhower’s military-industrial complex is alive and profiting. Since all Nato military forces have to have interoperability, they are constrained to buy the same fighter planes, mainly from Lockheed Martin . In times of austerity the military manufacturers flourish while, in Nato states, people are being hit by savage cuts in welfare services.

Can we hope that new thinking will come out of the Nato summit?

May 21, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | EUROPE, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Nuclear weapons, AND missile shields to stay in Europe – NATO

NATO’s Missile Shield To Keep Nations’ Nuclear Weapons http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-05-20/nato-s-missile-shield-to-keep-nations-nuclear-weapons.html By Helene Fouquet – May 20, 2012 France and the U.K. will get NATO’s assurance that the European missile defense shield isn’t intended to take the place of their nuclear weapons, according to a European official with knowledge of the discussions. Continue reading →