by Daryl G. Kimball
Ten years ago this month, tens of thousands of Indian and Pakistani soldiers faced off in a confrontation over the disputed Kashmir region. If not for intensive U.S.-led crisis diplomacy, that standoff and another in 2002 could have led to war between the two nuclear-armed rivals...
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Toward a Nuclear Freeze in South Asia
Nuclear Security in Pakistan: Reducing the Risks of Nuclear Terrorism
by Rolf Mowatt-Larssen
Today's frightening instability in Pakistan comes in a world in which global terrorists are actively seeking nuclear weapons and the materials and expertise needed to make them, a quest that has been underway for more than a decade. Rapid action is needed to keep the Taliban's advances in Pakistan from creating new opportunities for these deadly adversaries.
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Nuclear Security in Pakistan: Separating Myth From Reality
by Feroz Hassan Khan
Pakistan is passing through an extremely delicate phase in its history. Recent instability in Pakistan, including the Taliban's advance into settled areas, prompted the Pakistani military to undertake large-scale military operations in the Swat Valley. As military and Taliban forces fight in the rugged tribal terrain, several Western analysts have raised concerns about the future of nuclear Pakistan.
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Ending North Korea’s Nuclear Ambitions: The Need for Stronger Chinese Action
by Hui Zhang
North Korea has recently taken a series of provocative steps to challenge the international community. These steps include test-launching a long-range rocket, walking away from the six-party talks and all disarmament agreements, kicking out international inspectors from its nuclear facilities, conducting an underground nuclear test May 25-a more powerful blast than the one conducted in 2006-testing a half-dozen short-range missiles, and announcing it had resumed plutonium production and started a program to enrich uranium. Pyongyang reportedly also is preparing a long-range missile test and a third nuclear test. If unchecked, North Korea will surely increase the quantity and quality of its arsenal. Even worse, once Pyongyang has more than enough weapons for its deterrent, it might be tempted to sell the surplus. The longer the crisis lasts, the more nuclear capable North Korea will become and the more difficult it will be to roll back Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions.
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Looking Back: The National Missile Defense Act of 1999
by Greg Thielmann
The National Missile Defense Act of 1999 was described by its chief sponsor, Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), as "the necessary first step to protecting the United States from long-range ballistic missile attack." Indeed, the act constituted an important milestone on the road to U.S. withdrawal from the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty in 2002, a step that the sponsors of the act advocated. Although the act itself neither authorized any programs nor appropriated any funds, it was misrepresented then and has been misrepresented since as proof of strong congressional support for the urgent and unqualified pursuit of strategic missile defenses.
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Russia, U.S. Lag on Chemical Arms Deadline
by Rachel A. Weise
The likely failure of Russia and the United States, the holders of the world's largest stockpiles of chemical weapons, to meet a key treaty deadline for destroying their stocks is prompting varying responses from experts. In recent public statements and interviews, officials involved in the process emphasized the progress and commitment of the two countries, while independent experts expressed concern about the effect of the missed deadline on the nonproliferation regime.
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Accord on New Rules Eludes Nuclear Suppliers
by Daniel Horner
Nuclear supplier countries last month ended their annual plenary meeting without agreeing on new rules for exports related to uranium enrichment and spent fuel reprocessing.
In a June 12 statement issued at the close of a meeting in Budapest, the 46-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) said its members had "agreed to continue to work to strengthen" the group's guidelines in that area. Equipment and technology related to enrichment and reprocessing are considered to be particularly sensitive types of nuclear exports because those processes can produce material that is usable in a nuclear weapon.
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UN Tightens North Korea Sanctions
by Peter Crail
The UN Security Council last month broadly expanded sanctions and counterproliferation measures against North Korea in response to that country's May 25 nuclear test.
Resolution 1874, which the council unanimously adopted June 12, builds on the measures the council took in 2006 when it adopted Resolution 1718 in response to North Korea's first nuclear test.
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S. Korean Pyroprocessing Awaits U.S. Decision
by Daniel Horner
The Obama administration appears likely to make a decision that could complicate potential South Korean pursuit of a controversial spent fuel treatment process known as pyroprocessing, according to comments by current and former U.S. officials.
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GAO Finds Gap in U.S. Export Controls
by Emma Ensign
Sensitive dual-use and military technology can be easily and legally purchased within the United States and illegally exported without detection, according to a report issued by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) last month.
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MDA Tests Laser Amid Budget Cutbacks
by Eben W. Lindsey
The Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency (MDA) last month successfully tested the tracking components of the Airborne Laser (ABL) system, the agency announced June 15. The tests, which took place June 6 and June 13, mark the first time the ABL system successfully detected and tracked a missile in the boost phase. These tests come amid a series of decisions reducing or eliminating the funding for some missile defense programs.
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Obama Arms Control Team Fills Out
by Eben W. Lindsey
our months after Inauguration Day, President Barack Obama's arms control and nonproliferation team is taking shape.
One important position was filled late last month when the Senate approved the nomination of Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-Calif.) as undersecretary of state for arms control and international security. Tauscher, whose congressional district contains two national laboratories, has focused on arms control and nonproliferation issues throughout her career. As chair of the House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee, she has worked in Congress to strengthen nonproliferation programs and pushed for greater oversight of the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency. At her June 9 confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, she expressed her commitment to Obama's vision of a world without nuclear weapons and indicated that arms reductions by the United States would help the U.S. government promote its nonproliferation goals.
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IAEA Finds Uranium at Second Syrian Site
by Peter Crail
Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have discovered traces of an undeclared form of uranium at a second Syrian site, according to a June 5 IAEA report. The find adds further questions to a year-long IAEA inquiry into allegations that Syria had secretly pursued nuclear weapons.
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U.S. Still Committed to Engaging Iran
by Peter Crail
Responding to postelection turmoil in Iran and accusations of voting fraud in favor of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Washington has reaffirmed its intention to pursue a dialogue with Tehran regarding its nuclear program.
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Russia Vetoes UN Mission in Georgia
by Cole Harvey
Russia voted against extending the mandate of the United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) in the Security Council June 15, scuttling a last-minute effort to renew the mission's mandate and dealing another blow to the already strained Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) Treaty.
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