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The Status of Iran's Nuclear and Missile Programs: Complete Transcript and Power Point Slides Available

Authored by on November 29, 2010

By Alfred Nurja The Arms Control Association has just put up the full transcript and slides from our November 22 event "The Status of Iran's Nuclear and Missile Program," part of ACA's Solving the Iranian Nuclear Puzzle Project. Stay tuned for ACA's upcoming Iran briefing on "Pathways Towards a Diplomatic Solution" in early January. To read the full transcript please click here: http://www.armscontrol.org/events/IranNuclearStatus For a link to the PowerPoint presentation by Olli Heinonen, Senior Fellow at Harvard's Belfer Center and former Deputy Director General of the IAEA, click here: http...

Sen. Kyl Attempts to Kill New START with More Quibbles About Obama's $85b Nuclear Weapons Complex Plan

Authored by on November 25, 2010

By Daryl G. Kimball In his latest attempt to delay New START in order to 'earmark' still more funding for the well-funded weapons labs, Senators Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) have sent a 5-page letter (PDF) to fellow Republican Senators outlining their remaining (minor) "concerns" and peculiar interpretation of reality regarding the updated version of the Obama administration's so-called "Section 1251 Plan" on maintaining and upgrading the National Nuclear Security Administration's (NNSA) programs to maintain the shrinking number of U.S. nuclear weapons over the coming decade...

Iranian Missile and Nuclear Threat Not Imminent, Experts Conclude During November 22 Discussion Sponsored by ACA

Authored by on November 23, 2010

By Alfred Nurja The Arms Control Association hosted a briefing on the Status of Iranian Nuclear and Missile Program yesterday at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. This was the first in a series of four briefings designed to analyze the threat posed by the Iranian nuclear program and explore ways to deal with it. The highlights from the session that appear below are based on notes and are not direct quotations. Stay tuned for the release of the full transcript. Olli Heinonen , former IAEA Deputy Director General and head of the Safeguards Division, oversaw the Agency's efforts to...

North Korea's Uranium Enrichment Gambit Signals Trouble Ahead and the Need for Active U.S Engagement with Pyongyang

Authored by on November 21, 2010

By Daryl G. Kimball Like his predecessors, President Barack Obama is learning the hard way that the only thing worse than negotiating with North Korea is not negotiating with North Korea. North Korea has violated nearly every nonproliferation rule on the books and then some. ACA's October 2010 Nuclear Nonproliferation Report Card gave North Korea a grade of "F," but as we cautioned, Washington and other capitals need to resume the stalled Six-Party denuclearization process to prevent the North Korean situation from worsening still further. Indeed, with former Los Alamos Lab Director Siegfried...

4.5 Days Per Jet Fighter: The Right Formula for Middle East Peace?

Authored by on November 19, 2010

By Jeff Abramson F35s in flight. Source Lockheed Martin It looks like the next step in Middle East peace includes an offer of 20 F-35 fighter jets if Israel will agree to a 90-day freeze on new construction activities in disputed areas. That's one next-generation combat aircraft per 4.5 days. From the Israeli perspective, that's a deal likely too good to pass up. Sadly, it's difficult to be optimistic that the roughly $3-billion bribe will lead to agreement on borders, but let us hope so. This kind of arms-for-peace approach continues to raise questions about the Obama (and previous)...

Establishing a Credible Baseline on Iran's Nuclear and Missile Capabilities

Authored by on November 17, 2010

By Alfred Nurja The Washington Post reports November 16 that Iran and the world powers have agreed on a date for starting talks on Iran's nuclear program. Optimism about chances for success in the upcoming round of talks appears to be in short supply , and a number of notable Middle East policy experts have rushed to offer their best advice on dealing with Iran. Click here and here for outlines of recent recommendations, as well as evidence of the strong feelings that disagreeing experts share on the issue. A vigorous debate about the Iranian nuclear program is currently underway, but a...

Bout Extradition: An Important Step, Next One is Arms Trade Treaty

Authored by on November 16, 2010

It is welcome news that Viktor Bout, the so-called "Merchant of Death," is on a U.S.-bound plane from Thailand to face criminal charges. As the world's most high profile arms dealer, his extradition shows that it is possible for suspected weapons traffickers to face justice. This is cause for celebration, and also a reminder of why progress is needed on an Arms Trade Treaty and other measures to regulate the conventional arms trade. Bout was arrested in a U.S.-aided sting operation in March 2008 by Thai authorities, and indicted by the United States for trying to sell arms to Revolutionary...

John McCain: U.S. Should "Facilitate" Indian Missile Defense, Nuclear Subs

Authored by on November 16, 2010

By Eric Auner About two weeks ago, I had the opportunity to see John McCain speak about the future of U.S.-India relations. Most of it was boilerplate material about oldest democracy/largest democracy and the need for stability in Asia. All of that's good, but he made a few points that merit a response. McCain had this to say: [T]here is no reason why we cannot work to facilitate India's deployment of advanced defense capabilities, such as nuclear submarines, aircraft carriers, missile defense architecture, as well as India's inclusion in the development of the Joint Strike Fighter. It is one...

From Hiroshima, Nobel Peace Laureates Call for Action Toward a World Without Nukes, Beginning with New START and CTBT

Authored by on November 14, 2010

By Daryl G. Kimball Today in Hiroshima, the 11th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates concluded with the reading of "The Hiroshima Declaration on the Abolition of Nuclear Weapons" by 1997 Nobel prize recipient Jody Williams. The declaration notes that since the end of the Cold War, enormous progress toward the goal of a world without nuclear weapons has been achieved but " ... there are still enough nuclear weapons to destroy life on Earth many times over. The proliferation of nuclear weapons and the possibility of their use for acts of terrorism are additional causes for deep concern. The...

In any language, Nuevo START es vital para la seguridad nacional

Authored by on November 11, 2010

By Daryl G. Kimball The United States Senate reconvenes next week for its post-election lame duck session and has an opportunity to overcome the partisan divide of the election season to support ratification of the New START . If they can agree to set aside two to three days for debate and a vote, the White House and Senate Republicans agree the treaty would be approved. Why? Because New START makes sense for U.S. national and international security in any language. Avis Bohlen, former George W. Bush administration assistant secretary of state for arms control, and I wrote an op-ed for the...