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Journal of South Asian Non-Proliferation and Security January, 2010 Editorial Staff
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SASSI Journal
of South Asian Non-Proliferation and Security is an online compendium of
security related publications.
It is a periodic compilation of news, official statements, and expert analyses
related to South Asian security issues.
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Supporting worldwide understanding of South Asian security, non-proliferation, arms control and disarmament issues. A Product of the South Asian Strategic Stability Institute (SASSI) CONTENTSOPINION / EDITORIAL NUCLEAR CENTRAL ASIA MIDDLE EAST KASHMIR NUCLEAR TERRORISM ENERGY / CLIMATE
December
23, 2009
Ice Melting
Faster Everywhere
Alexandra
Giese
From
the Arctic sea ice to the Antarctic interior and the mountainous peaks of
Peru, Alaska, and Tibet, ice is melting at an alarming rate. The accelerating
loss of ice sheets, sea ice, and glaciers is one of the most powerful and
striking indicators of a warming climate.
The
most notable ice loss in recent years has been the shrinking of sea ice in
the Arctic Ocean. From the beginning of the satellite record in 1979 through
1996, ice area decreased at a steady rate of 3 percent per decade in response
to rising temperature. In the following decade, ice area decreased by 11
percent, reaching a dramatic minimum in 2007. In September of that year, sea
ice occupied only 3.6 million square kilometers, an area 27 percent smaller
than the previous record low (in 2005) and 38 percent smaller than the
1979–2007 average. Summer sea ice coverage has increased slightly in
the last two years, but it is still far below the long-term average. (See figure.)
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NUCLEAR |
Tehran
plays down nuclear statements, revision of IAEA cooperation
03 Dec 2009, The Earth Times - Tehran - Tehran on Thursday played down the recent official reactions in Iran following the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) resolution against the Islamic state, Fars news agency reported. The Iranian parliament had earlier this week urged the government to revise its cooperation with the IAEA - and even consider withdrawing from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty - after the United Nations nuclear watchdog last week issued a resolution against Iran.
Also Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ordered the construction of ten new enrichment sites and further proclaimed that if the uranium exchange plan with Russia and France failed, Iran would by itself increase the required uranium enrichment level to 20 per cent.
"We have no plans to cut our connection and cooperation with the IAEA and will not withdraw from the NPT," Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast was quoted by the Fars news agency as saying.
WORLD:
Iranian official calls for major nuclear expansion
December 6,
2009 Iranian official calls for
major nuclear expansion
Iran's vice president said Saturday his country needs 20 industrial-scale uranium enrichment facilities, a potentially dramatic expansion of its nuclear program in defiance of U.N. demands. Ali Akbar Salehi, who also heads the nuclear program, told IRNA news agency that Iran needs the sites to generate 20,000 megawatts of electricity through nuclear power plants over the next 20 years. The statement comes at a time of heightened Western concerns over Iran's nuclear intentions. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said Iran is considering whether to scale back cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency after it approved a resolution censuring Iran over its nuclear program.
Europe may add little on the Iranian
nuclear standoff
December
09, 2009 European governments are maintaining a united public position as
the long-running crisis over IranÕs nuclear program slouches toward its next
stage. But behind closed doors the European UnionÕs Òbig threeÓ are deeply
pessimistic about prospects for a deal with Tehran. The policy remains a
Òtwo-trackÓ pursuit of negotiations coupled with discussion of sanctions, which
is now certain to intensify. The remark by French Foreign Minister Bernard
Kouchner that Iran faces a Òlast chanceÓ captures the Western mood
succinctly. BritainÕs foreign secretary, David Miliband, chose instead to
advertise Òthe calm, determination and unity of the international communityÓ
in response to Iranian President Mahmoud AhmadinejadÕs provocative
announcement of plans to build 10 more uranium enrichment plants.
Iran
Denies Enrichment Expansion Aimed at Challenging IAEA
Global Security, Dec. 9, 2009 - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad today said his country's announcement last week of plans to build another 10 uranium enrichment facilities was not intended to challenge the 35-nation governing board of the International Atomic Energy Agency, which had issued a resolution denouncing some of the Middle Eastern state's nuclear activities, Agence France-Presse reported. The United States and other Western powers suspect that Iran's uranium enrichment program is aimed at generating nuclear-weapon material, but Tehran has said its aims are strictly civilian in nature. "The news that we announced (about the new plants) was not to confront the board of the agency, as we had assigned the (Iranian) Atomic Energy Organization to locate several sites (for the new plants) months ago," Iranian state media quoted Ahmadinejad as saying.
Iranian
Minister Threatens Dimona
Dec 10, 2009 Just as the UN Security Council prepares to discuss Iran sanctions on Thursday, Iranian officials said they would not hesitate to carry out a military strike against Israel if their country came under "threat." Following the International Atomic Energy Agency's censure against Iran last month, the open meeting of the Council's sanctions committee on Thursday is set to focus on sanctions violations, with considerations of possible new sanctions, officials said. But the meeting also comes amid concerns over Iran's various leadership roles at the UN, including its appointment this week as chair of the UN Industrial Development Organization's General Conference in Vienna.
Iran FM: We're willing to consider nuclear fuel swap
Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said Saturday that Tehran was ready to consider a recent proposal issued by Western nations under which Iran would obtain nuclear fuel from outside sources rather than producing it itself, the official IRNA news agency reported. "We are ready to examine proposals by the other side about the fuel swap," Mottaki told IRNA. The United States dismissed earlier this month an offer to swap 400 kilograms of low-enriched uranium on the Iranian island of Kish for nuclear fuel enriched to 20 percent, in what would be the first phase of a deal with world powers. Mottaki reiterated a mid-December statement that Iran did not "insist on" the Kish plan. "The objective of that proposal was to open a way for the other side," the news agency quoted Mottaki as saying.
Ahmadinejad:
'Iran is solid and united'
23 December 2009: There have been fresh clashes between Iran's security forces and
opposition protesters at events to mark the death of leading dissident cleric
Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri. In an exclusive interview for Channel
4 News the Iranian President, Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad, has denied that his forces have attacked and intimidated opponents and warned the West not to assume that his
country is divided. He spoke
exclusively to Jon
Snow: Jon Snow "Mr. President do you accept that this
country is at a cross roads? We are one week away from the end of the year
and that the deadline when you have to give a response to the nuclear offer
made by the P5+1. "The P5 group that meets with Germany from the security
council of the United
Nations - apparently representing the security council that has made this
proposal about enrichment taking the material outside the country, bringing
it back. And they say by the end of this year that is the deadline for a
response."
Iran denies nuclear bomb trigger claim;
accuses U.S. of forging papers
Eraldo PeresIn an interview with ABC News which was broadcast on Monday, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad denied claims by The London Times last week that a leaked paper indicates that the country is working on a trigger device for a nuclear bomb. This all comes at a time when Iran has been receiving increasing pressure from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the United Nations to create transparency within its nuclear energy program, a program which many western countries feel may actually be a disguised weapons program.
New Chief Takes Charge at the U.N.
Nuclear Agency
A new top inspector took charge Tuesday of the International Atomic Energy Agency as it faces one of the most turbulent periods in its 52-year history. Yukiya Amano, 62, is a career diplomat and lawyer who served as JapanÕs representative to the agency until his selection as director general in July. He inherits crises with Iran and North Korea, as well as the weakening of the global security system meant to curtail the spread of nuclear weapons.
India, Russia sign deals on nuclear
energy, defense
(AFP) – Dec 7, 2009: MOSCOW — India and Russia signed deals on nuclear energy and arms sales on Monday as Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh held talks in the Kremlin with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. "We welcome Russia's participation in the broadening of our nuclear energy programme," Singh told reporters after the talks, according to remarks translated into Russian. "The successful end of the negotiations on the intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the peaceful use of atomic energy is a major step forward," he added.
Cyber Security Shortcomings at Nuclear Labs?
The Department of Energy, which is responsible for the nation's nuclear weapons and nuclear energy, may jeopardize the security of its technology and lose millions of dollars if it does not improve its cyber security, according to a recent Inspector General's report.
US Signs Nuclear Deal with UAE
The new deal allows the United Arab Emirates to receive sensitive information and materials from the United States to help create the Arab world's first civilian nuclear power industry. Rapid development in Dubai is straining the emirate's power supplies, 12 Dec 2009 The United States and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have signed a landmark agreement on peaceful nuclear cooperation.
Russia and India agree on nuclear energy
Russian president Dmitri Medvedev and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Russia gained a much sought-after foothold in India's nuclear energy sector when Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Dmitry Medvedev agreed in Moscow on December 7 to step up co-operation on civilian nuclear energy. India's delegation also left the negotiations pleased that the two countries appeared to have ended the stalemate over the delivery by Russia of a refurbished aircraft carrier to India. The delivery of the Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier has been delayed for two years by a price dispute that has soured relations.
2010 to be key year in fight against
nuclear arms
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Next year will be crucial for global nuclear non-proliferation efforts and all eyes will be on the United States and Russia to see if the two top atomic powers can reach a deal to reduce their arsenals. In April, U.S. President Barack Obama declared in a speech in Prague that the United States was committed "to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons." In September he chaired a meeting of the U.N. Security Council that unanimously supported this vision.
Obama Administration Plans to Boost Focus
on Nuclear Terrorism
The United States is expected make efforts to stop terrorists from acquiring nuclear weapons a core tenet of its revised nuclear policy, the New York Times reported Saturday. Emergency response personnel treat a victim of a mock nuclear explosion during a 2006 drill in Honolulu, Hawaii. A forthcoming U.S. nuclear strategy document is expected to place top priority on efforts to counter nuclear terrorism.
Harvard's Allison: be afraid of nuclear
race
"The global nuclear order today could be as fragile as the global financial order was two years ago, when conventional wisdom declared it to be sound, stable and resilient," Allison writes. Allison, who is director of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Kennedy School, says one encouraging factor is that President Obama gets it. The administration, Allison says, is making the most aggressive effort to revitalize the nuclear order since President Kennedy: the US has pledged to reduce its own reliance on nuclear weapons in its security strategy; is negotiating a new arms agreement with Russia, is working to ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty and is doing more to address the threats of nuclear terrorism.
A New Approach to US Nuclear Policy:
Deterring Nuclear Terrorism
Back in August of this year, the Pentagon released two fact sheets on the Nuclear Posture Review, or NPR. As it states quite simply, the objective of the NPR is: To establish U.S. nuclear policy, strategy, capabilities and force posture for the next 5 - 10 years. At the time, a number of experts expressed concern about whether or not the Obama administration was going to take a fresh, new direction with the NPR, or simply continue Bush administration policies. Joe Cirincione, president of the Ploughshares Fund, told me in an interview:
U.S. to Make Stopping Nuclear Terror Key
Aim
WASHINGTON — The Obama administrationÕs classified review of nuclear weapons policy will for the first time make thwarting nuclear-armed terrorists a central aim of American strategic nuclear planning, according to senior Pentagon officials. When completed next year, the Nuclear Posture Review will order the entire government to focus on countering nuclear terrorists — whether armed with rudimentary bombs, stolen warheads or devices surreptitiously supplied by a hostile state — as a task equal to the traditional mission of deterring a strike by major powers or emerging nuclear adversaries.
Terrorism a Focus of Nuclear Security
Summit Planning Meeting
At a planning meeting held yesterday ahead of the 2010 Global Nuclear Security Conference, delegates from countries pursuing or in possession of nuclear energy capabilities agreed on the importance of strengthening measures to combat nuclear terrorism, Kyodo News reported. "A lot of international agreements, conventions, rules and guidelines (on nuclear security are in place)," a Japanese Foreign Ministry official said. "How they can fully be implemented will be a big challenge."
The tragic nuclear incident at Chernobyl in 1986 had clearly verified that even without using an atomic bomb, this very technology can eliminate hundreds of people through radiation exposure, leaving behind thousands of persons, affected with fatal diseases which also travel from generation to generation. After that major incident, big nuclear powers and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) emphasised the atomic countries for the need of a tight mechanism in order to avoid any catastrophe.
LAHORE – After short lulls, international media repeatedly explodes with startling reports about ÔinsecurityÕ of PakistanÕs nuclear facilities (Arnaud de Borchgrave, Hersh, et al). Hypersensitive analysts have postulated that terrorists may steal nuclear material to fabricate a Òdirty bombÓ, a euphemism for a radiological dispersal device. Post-graduate students in foreign universities have been analysing hypothetical implications of radioactive material falling into hands of so-called ÒterroristsÓ.
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AFGHANISTAN |
Obama
plans to send 30,000 to 35,000 more troops to Afghanistan
December
1, 2009 Reporting from Washington - President Obama plans to send
30,000 to 35,000 additional soldiers and Marines to Afghanistan, U.S.
officials said Monday, the largest single U.S. deployment since the 2003
invasion of Iraq. The additional troops, Obama's second major escalation of
the conflict this year, will bring the number of U.S. forces in Afghanistan
to about 100,000. But even as he dramatically escalates the war, Obama is
expected to emphasize that there are limits to the length of U.S. military
involvement in the region, White House officials said, though he is not
prepared to set concrete deadlines for withdrawal. Obama will announce his
newest Afghan strategy in a televised speech tonight before cadets at the
U.S. Military Academy at West Point. It represents his second attempt to
forge a joint strategy for dealing with Taliban fighters and other insurgents
in Afghanistan and Pakistan. In addition to the military buildup, aides say
the president's speech will lay out plans for civilian efforts to stabilize
Afghanistan and benchmarks for measuring progress.
Apply lessons
learned in Iraq to Afghanistan, diplomat says in speech at Fort Leavenworth
December
2, 2009: Former ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker called a surge in Afghanistan
Òthe essential way forwardÓ as he spoke at Fort Leavenworth on Tuesday. ÒWill
it work? WeÕll have to see,Ó Crocker said. ÒWill it be the same as it was in
Iraq? Absolutely not.Ó Crocker led civilian efforts in Iraq, and his close
working relationship with Gen. David Petraeus, who led military efforts, has
been hailed as a key aspect of the successful surge in that country. His
lecture to military and civilian students at the Command and General Staff
College came hours before President Barack Obama presented his plan for
Afghanistan. Crocker presented two basic lessons learned from Iraq that could
ring true throughout Afghanistan and the rest of the Middle East: ¥Be careful
what youÕre getting into. ÒYouÕre playing on the other guyÕs court,Ó he said.
Obama
receives NATO, U.N. backing on Afghanistan
December 3, 2009 United Nations (CNN) -- U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon welcomed U.S. President Barack Obama's plan to deploy 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan. In a written statement, Ban praised Obama's aim to "balance military and civilian efforts" and focus on strengthening institutions and security forces in Afghanistan, noting that it would be a long-term but essential process. Obama's decision will bring the total number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan to nearly 100,000. In part, the new 18-month initiative against the Taliban seeks to accelerate the training of Afghan national security forces. As early as July 2011, troops would begin transferring responsibility to Afghan authorities. However, U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice indicated "it is not the expectation" that all required Afghan security forces "will be trained within 18 months."
No Bin Laden
information in years, says Gates
6 December 2009 The US has had no reliable information on the whereabouts of al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden in years, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has admitted. Mr Gates told ABC News in remarks broadcast on Sunday: "Well, we don't know for a fact where Osama Bin Laden is. If we did, we'd go get him." A Taliban detainee in Pakistan told the BBC last week that he had information Bin Laden was in Afghanistan this year. However, Mr Gates said he could not confirm that information. When asked by ABC's This Week programme when the US last had any good intelligence on the whereabouts of the al-Qaeda leader, Mr Gates said: "I think it's been years."
Turkey
refuses U.S. call to send more troops in Afghanistan
ISTANBUL, Dec. 6 (Xinhua) – Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday ruled out sending more troops to Afghanistan as requested by the United States before heading for Washington. Erdogan said that Turkey has already
contributed the "necessary number" of troops. However, it is willing to train the Afghan army and police. The 1,700 Turkish troops in Afghanistan are involved in patrolling the capital city of Kabul instead of combat missions. The Turkish prime minister made the statement at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport prior to his visit to the United States. On Monday, he will meet with U.S. President Barack Obama, who announced last Tuesday the deployment of 30,000 more U.S. soldiers to Afghanistan.
Petraeus
predicts intensified combat in Afghanistan
December
10, 2009 Reporting from Washington - Progress will come more slowly from the
U.S. troop escalation in Afghanistan than it did during a similar move in
Iraq, the top American commander in the Middle East told Congress on
Wednesday, predicting intensified combat in coming months. Army Gen. David H.
Petraeus, the head of U.S. Central Command, said Afghanistan was beset by
problems that would challenge the new U.S. strategy, including government
corruption, insurgent sanctuaries along the Pakistani border and the strength
of the Taliban movement.
Petraeus commanded U.S. forces in Iraq in 2007 and '08. He often called the
situation there "hard but not hopeless." Testifying before the
Senate Foreign Relations Committee, he said Afghanistan was "no more
hopeless" than Iraq was.
Afghanistan
troops timeline gets its first revision
December 14, 2009 Kabul, Afghanistan - The full complement of American forces deploying to Afghanistan under President ObamaÕs new strategy will not arrive until November, a top commander here said. The new, more gradual timeline means it will take longer for Mr. ObamaÕs surge of forces to arrive, thus potentially blunting their impact in the surgeÕs initial phases and leading to a slower drawdown of forces after July 2011. It comes as the military confronts the realities of deploying such a large force into a landlocked country with little in the way of infrastructure. Originally, the Obama administration had hoped to accelerate the deployment of the 30,000 additional forces in its get-in-and-get-out approach. The idea was to deploy new forces quickly and then begin a gradual withdrawal in July 2011. Senior administration officials said Dec. 1, the day Obama announced his new strategy, that it would take six months for all 30,000 troops to arrive.
U.S. steps up special operations mission
in Afghanistan
December
16, 2009 Reporting from Washington - The U.S. military command has quietly
shifted and intensified the mission of clandestine special operations forces
in Afghanistan, senior officials said, targeting key figures within the
Taliban, rather than almost exclusively hunting Al Qaeda leaders. As a result
of orders from Army Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, the top U.S. and allied
commander in Afghanistan, the special operations teams are focusing more on
killing militants, capturing them or, whenever possible, persuading them to
turn against the Taliban-led insurgency. The number of raids carried out by
such units as the Army's Delta Force and Navy's SEAL Team Six in Afghanistan
has more than quadrupled in recent months. The teams carried out 90 raids in
November, U.S. officials said, compared with 20 in May. U.S. special
operations forces primarily conduct missions in eastern and southern
Afghanistan.
Officials Say Iraq Fighters Intercepted
Drone Video
December 17, 2009 WASHINGTON — Insurgents in Iraq have occasionally intercepted video images sent from American military drones to troops in the field, causing the Defense Department to increase its use of encryption over the last year, military and intelligence officials said Thursday. The military has made extensive use of the remotely piloted drones for surveillance in Iraq and Afghanistan, using live video images to track insurgents, to catch them burying roadside bombs or to identify their houses or weapons caches. Most of that data is highly encrypted, and it has been critical to guiding attacks on the insurgents, often with missiles fired from the drones themselves or from helicopters.
New
U.S. Spy Plane to Be in Afghanistan by Christmas
December 21, 2009 U.S. troops in Afghanistan are getting a new tool in their fight against terrorism in the form of a spy plane that will provide ground troops with still images, video and eavesdropping, Bloomberg reported. The first of the 24 new Hawker Beechcraft four-man twin-propeller plane is expected to arrive by Christmas -- one month ahead of schedule, Lt. General David Deptula said in an e-mail, Bloomberg reported.
In April 2008, the planes were ordered by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to up the number of manned and unmanned aircraft collecting intelligence data, and will now be used to help support the 30,000 troops Obama ordered to Afghanistan. The plans have the capability to send images and video directly to ground troops, who will have portable computers that will let them see the images, Bloomberg reported.
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CENTRAL ASIA |
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MIDDLE EAST |
"Transformative change" key to
peace in Middle East: Austrian UN ambassador
December 1, 2009 "Transformative
change on the ground is integral to peace" for a Palestinian state, the
president of the UN Security Council, Austrian UN Ambassador Thomas
Mayr-Harting, said here Monday.
December 1, 2009 Middle East
governments, facing the challenges presented by the world's highest levels of
population growth, have recognised that sustained long-term economic growth
is heavily dependent on their transport infrastructures, with investment in
excess of $147bn currently committed to address the region's transportation
needs.
Middle East firms build up operations in
Iraq
December 1, 2009 While Western
firms notch up high-profile deals in Iraq, smaller regional companies from
Iran to Turkey are quietly building a broader Iraqi presence by pumping
billions of dollars into housing and other projects.
Middle East press sees double standards in
Swiss ban
December 1, 2009 Newspapers in the Middle East are critical
after the Swiss voted in a referendum to ban the building of minarets.
Middle
East conflict played out in the olive groves
December 1, 2009 Akram Imran says the Jewish settlers
came at night. "I came to work in the early morning. It was a horrible
sight, a massacre of trees," he said. "Some of them are at least 70
years old." Climbing over a heap of withered branches in his olive grove
on a rocky hillside near the village of Burin, the Palestinian farmer said
they attacked 81 trees.
Switzerland's
minaret ban receives tough reception in the Middle East
December 1, 2009 Switzerland's controversial referendum
decision to ban the construction of new minarets for Swiss mosques has caused
varying degrees of concern in the Arab world, and attracted a wide ranging
debate about the reasons behind the decision.
UNÕs
Middle East envoy urges halt to demolitions, evictions in East Jerusalem
December 1, 2009 The top United Nations envoy to the
Middle East today reiterated Secretary-General Ban Ki-moonÕs call for an
immediate end to demolitions, evictions and the instalment of Israeli
settlers in Palestinian neighbourhoods, as he visited the Sheikh Jarrah area
in East Jerusalem, outside a house that was occupied by settlers.
Israel
enforcing West Bank settlement moratorium
December 1, 2009 Israeli inspectors armed with aerial
maps and empowered to confiscate construction equipment have begun enforcing
a limited government moratorium on new building in West Bank settlements,
officials said on Monday.
Middle
East press unfazed on Dubai debt
December 2, 2009 Papers in the Middle East appear not to
be shocked by the announcement by Dubai World that it is to reschedule part
of its debts.
Egypt calls upon UN to support draft
resolutions on Palestine
December 2, 2009 Egypt on Tuesday urged the UN General
Assembly to support draft resolutions which express "grave concern"
over Israel's illegal settlement activities and restrictions on Palestinian
people.
Iraq
sees alarming rise in cancer, deformed babies
December 2, 2009 The guns are gradually falling
silent in Iraq as a fragile stability takes hold, turning the spotlight on a
stealthier killer likely to stalk Iraqis for years to come. Incidences of
cancer, deformed babies and other health problems have risen sharply, Iraqi officials
say, and many suspect contamination from weapons used in years of war and
accompanying unchecked pollution as a cause.
Israel
okays new building projects despite moratorium
December 3, 2009 The Israeli government has authorised
the construction of another 84 new homes in West Bank settlements, despite
the moratorium it announced last week, Israel Radio reported.
Israel
think-tank warns EU off "Swedish proposal"
December 3, 2009 A proposal before the European Union to
endorse the division of Jerusalem would risk closing off half the city to
non-Muslims, according to a think tank close to the Israeli government.
Israeli
settlers reject plea to reduce tensions
December 4, 2009
Defiant West Bank settler leaders rejected a personal
plea from the Israeli prime minister on Thursday to respect a
government-ordered construction freeze in their communities, vowing to keep
confronting security forces sent to enforce the edict.
Bush, Blair condemned over Iraq invasion
December 6, 2009 George W Bush and Tony BlairÕs conviction that Iraqi leader
Saddam Hussein was a threat blinded them to the lack of evidence justifying a
war to depose him, an ex-UN weapons inspector said on Saturday.
LebanonÕs Palestinians: refugees for life
December 7, 2009 Palestinian President Mahmud AbbasÕs visit to Beirut today
(Monday) casts the spotlight on the plight of nearly 300,000 Palestinians in
Lebanon who fear they are doomed to be refugees for life.
UN
urges Iraq to set election date Ôas soon as possibleÕ
December 8, 2009 The United Nations on Monday urged the
Iraqi president to announce Òas soon as possibleÓ the date for the war-torn
countryÕs general election after MPs struck a last minute deal to back the
poll.
Netanyahu
prefers France for Syrian mediation
December 8, 2009 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu on Monday said that he would prefer French rather than Turkish
mediation in the event indirect talks with Syria are revived.
ÔArab
countries flop on human rightsÕ
December 9, 2009 Human rights deteriorated across the
Arab world in 2009 with torture widely practiced in several countries, mainly
Egypt, an Arab watchdog said in a report released on Tuesday.
Israel gives initial nod to land referendum
bill
December 10, 2009 The Israeli parliament on
Wednesday passed the first reading of a bill requiring a referendum to
approve a pullout from annexed east Jerusalem and the Golan Heights as part
of any peace deal.
Egypt
ÔworkingÕ on Gaza border wall
December 10, 2009 Egyptian earth-moving machinery was at
work on the Gaza Strip border on Wednesday and an Israeli newspaper said the
project under way was a subterranean metal wall to block Palestinian
smuggling tunnels.
EU
warns Israel not to divide bloc over Jerusalem
December 11, 2009 The European Union warned Israel on
Thursday not to play Òdivide and ruleÓ with the 27-nation bloc over the EUÕs
new position that Jerusalem should be the shared capital of Israel and a
future Palestinian state.
Iran
to face new sanctions: Gates, EU
December 12, 2009 US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates
said on Friday he expected the international community to impose significant
additional sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme.
Saudi
Arabia denies Huthi rebels seized border post
December 13, 2009 The Saudi military denied a claim by
YemenÕs Huthi rebels that they seized a Saudi border post, but said fighting
has been heavy in the area, Saudi media reported on Saturday.
Blair
Iraq war admission sparks fresh outrage
December 14, 2009 Tony BlairÕs admission that Britain
would have backed the Iraq war even if he knew it did not have weapons of
mass destruction (WMD) sparked outrage on Sunday and calls for his
prosecution for war crimes.
Hamas
vows to Ôliberate PalestineÕ at Gaza rally
December 15, 2009 Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniya on
Monday told tens of thousands of Hamas supporters his group remains committed
to the elimination of Israel, on the 22nd anniversary of its founding.
Chavez
sees US ÔthreatÕ over Iran ties
December 15, 2009 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said
on Sunday that US Secretary of State Hillary ClintonÕs warning to Latin
American nations about their ties with Iran was Òan overt threatÓ, especially
to his country and Bolivia.
Abbas
blames Israel for stalled peace talks
December 16, 2009 Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas on
Tuesday accused Israel of crippling the Middle East peace process by refusing
to completely freeze all settlement activity on occupied Palestinian land.
Much
of West Bank closed to Palestinian building: UN
December 16, 2009 About 44 percent of the West Bank is
effectively off-limits to Palestinian construction, with much of that area
reserved for the Israeli military and settlers, a UN agency said on Tuesday.
US
backing lets Israel stall peace: Saudi FM
December 17, 2009 Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince
Saud al-Faisal said in an interview published on Wednesday that US backing
for Israel gave the Jewish state the option of not making peace.
Egypt
mediator to help conclude prisoner swap in Jerusalem
December 18, 2009
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has invited a
senior Egyptian mediator to Jerusalem on Sunday, raising speculation that
Israel is about to make its latest response to the Hamas movement for a major
prisoner swap.
U.S.
Companies Shut Out as Iraq Auctions Its Oil Fields
December 19, 2009 Those who claim that the U.S. invaded
Iraq in 2003 to get control of the country's giant oil reserves will be left
scratching their heads by the results of last weekend's auction of Iraqi oil
contracts: Not a single U.S. company secured a deal in the auction of
contracts that will shape the Iraqi oil industry for the next couple of
decades.
December 19, 2009 The US provided firepower and
intelligence to help the Yemeni government launch a series of deadly raids
against suspected al-Qaeda bases in the country, the New York Times has
reported.
'A
secure Iraq would benefit the entire Middle East'
December 20, 2009 Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
says that a safe and secure Iraq would benefit the entire Middle East.
Revealed:
the map of Olmert's 2008 peace plan for the Middle East
December 20, 2009 In an exclusive story, IsraelÕs Haaretz
newspaper has published Prime Minister Ehud OlmertÕs 2008 plan for peace with
the Palestinians.
'Egypt
should fear Iran more than we do'
December 20, 2009 At the end of an hour-long meeting
Sunday evening with Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, Foreign
Minister Avigdor Lieberman stated that "Egypt has more to fear from Iran
than we do."
UN should play lead in Middle
East settlement -Arab League chief
December 20, 2009 The United Nations should play the
leading role in the settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the chief
of the Arab League said.
Hariri
sees new page in LebanonÕs ties with Syria
December 21, 2009
Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri said on Sunday he
agreed with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on practical steps to open up
Ònew horizonsÓ in ties between the two Arab neighbours.
Israel
to step up crackdown on settlement growth
December 21, 2009 Israel plans to deploy hundreds of
troops to destroy illegal structures and prevent settler violence in order to
enforce West Bank settlement restrictions, a security official said on
Sunday.
Middle East settlement needs
"impossible" concessions - experts
December 21, 2009 The settlement of the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict currently requires both sides to make
concessions, which are almost impossible in practice, a report prepared for
an international Middle East conference in Jordan said.
N.Korean
Arms 'Bound for Middle East'
December 21, 2009 A cargo aircraft carrying North Korean weapons
seized by the Thai government on Dec. 12 was bound for the Middle East, a
senior U.S. intelligence officer claimed Friday.
Israel
and Germany in total accord on Iran
November 24, 2009 While Germany and Israel may not see
eye to eye on construction in Gilo, they are in total accord when it comes to
Iran. The Iranian issue was without dispute in the discussions between
President Shimon Peres and German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle in
Jerusalem on Tuesday.
Brazil:
World should engage, not isolate Iran
November 24, 2009 Engaging, not isolating Iran is the way
to push for peace and stability in the Middle East, said Brazilian President
Luis Inacio Lula da Silva as he headed into private talks Monday with his
increasingly alienated Iranian counterpart.
Abbas: Obama is
'doing nothing' for Middle East peace
November 24, 2009 Palestinian National Authority
President Mahmoud Abbas complained that U.S. President Barack Obama "is
doing nothing for the peace process" in the Middle East so far.
Obama
returns focus to the Middle East
November 24, 2009 As President Barack Obama arrives home
from his week-long tour of East Asia, he confronts a growing list of
ever-more urgent problems in the Greater Middle East that he inherited from
George W Bush's "global war on terror".
Middle East peace process in
"deep and worrying impasse" - UN
November 25, 2009 The Middle East peace process and
political efforts for a negotiated two-state solution have reached "a
deep and worrying impasse," the UN assistant secretary general has said.
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MISSILES |
Poland, U.S. Agree on Patriot Deployment
Troop Terms
December
1, 2009 - Poland and the United States have finished negotiating an agreement
that would address the legal status of U.S. military personnel to be deployed
on Polish territory with a Patriot missile defense system, Reuters reported
last week.
Raytheon Receives $17M for South Korean
Patriot Upgrades
December
2, 2009 - Raytheon Co. has received a $17 million contract modification to
upgrade the communication capabilities of South Korea's Patriot Air and
Missile Defense System, the U.S. defense contractor said yesterday.
Missile-Tracking Satellite Passes
Environmental Tests
December
2, 2009 - A geosynchronous satellite for the planned U.S. Space-Based
Infrared System has successfully undergone a thermal vacuum testing process
designed to simulate conditions in orbit, Lockheed Martin Corp. announced
yesterday.
Japanese, U.S. Armies to Hold Missile
Defense Drill
December
3, 2009 - The armies of Japan and the United States are expected to test
their missile defense preparedness in a military exercise next Monday, the
Washington Times reported.
Japanese Court Upholds Sentence Over
Missile Defense Radar Leak
December
4, 2009 - A suspended prison sentence for a former Japanese military officer
convicted of leaking privileged information on the Aegis missile defense
system was upheld yesterday by the Tokyo High Court, the Asahi Shimbun
newspaper reported.
Chavez: Venezuela acquires thousands of
missiles
December
7, 2009 - President Hugo Chavez said Monday that Venezuela has received
thousands of Russian-made missiles and rocket launchers as part of his
government's military preparations for a possible armed conflict with
neighboring Colombia.
NATO Open to Missile-Defense Cooperation
With Russia
December
7, 2009 - NATO announced Friday that it was prepared to consider
collaborating on missile defense with Russia, in an indication that relations
are improving with Moscow since its 2008 invasion of Georgia, Russia Today
reported.
U.S., Poland Sign Troop Agreement for
Missile Deployment
December
11, 2009 - Washington and Warsaw today signed an accord on the legal status
of U.S. soldiers stationed in Poland that is a prerequisite for the
deployment of Patriot air defenses in the European country, Agence
France-Presse reported.
US, Poland status of forces pact deepens
military cooperation
December
11, 2009 - The US and Poland have reached an agreement to station an American
antimissile defense system on Polish soil two months after plans to install a
more robust missile system in Poland and the Czech Republic were scrapped in
the face of intense Russian opposition.
Norway light spiral – missile failure
caused by UFO/ET intervention?
December
13, 2009 - After first denying any missile test in the White Sea region where
mysterious spiral lights could be seen over much of Norway on December 9,
Russia one day later announced an embarrassing failure of a new
intercontinental ballistic nuclear missile. RussiaÕs Bulava missile spun out
of control during the third stage of a test launch.
Technical Glitch Foils Missile Defense Test
December
14, 2009 - A technical problem with a target missile Friday curtailed an
intercept test of the U.S. Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system, the
Missile Defense Agency announced.
India Tests Nuclear-Capable Missile
December
14, 2009 - India yesterday conducted a successful test-firing of a ballistic
missile that could be armed with a nuclear warhead, Reuters reported.
Japan Holds Off on Further Patriot Missiles
December
15, 2009 - Japan's coalition government appears to have decided yesterday to
delay the fielding of additional Patriot Advanced Capability 3 air defense
interceptors, Kyodo News reported.
U.S. to Simulate Missile Attack by Iran in
Shield Test
December
15, 2009 - The United States next month intends to assess its defenses
against a possible long-range Iranian missile strike in a test expected to
cost $150 million, Reuters reported.
Russia Navy to continue work with Bulava
missile – commander
December
15, 2009 - Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy Admiral Vladimir Vysotsky
believes it is impossible to refuse from the submarine-launched
intercontinental ballistic missile Bulava, despite its recent unsuccessful
tests, and impossible to replace it with another missile.
Russia completes trials of new
surface-to-air missile
December
16, 2009 - Russia has completed preliminary testing of a long-term
interceptor missile for the advanced S-400 missile-defense system, the chief
of the Almaz-Antei design bureau said on Wednesday.
Iran Launches Long-Range Missile in Test
December
16, 2009 - Iran announced that it had successfully today test-launched an
improved version of its long-range Sajjil 2 missile, Reuters reported.
Russia Working on New Missile Defense
System
December
17, 2009
Moscow
has announced that work is under way on a new integrated missile and air
defense system, Interfax reported yesterday.
US to stage simulated Iran missile attack
after Sajjil-2 test
December
17, 2009 - The Pentagon will simulate an Iran missile attack with an ICBM in
January, addressing a threat that is as yet hypothetical. Iran tested a
medium-range Sajjil-2 missile Wednesday.
Israel's Iron Dome interceptor downs
missile in first live fire test
December
17, 2009 TEL AVIV — Israel's new rocket defense system has proven a
hit-to-kill capability. Officials said Israel's Iron Dome has achieved the
ability to strike incoming short-range missiles and rockets. They said the
Iron Dome demonstrated this during its first live fire test in mid-2009.
Saudi Arabia requests sale of TOW missiles for National Guard
modernisation programme
December
18, 2009 - The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) notified the US
Congress on December 16 of a possible foreign military sale (FMS) to Saudi
Arabia of 2,742 BGM-71E-4B-RF Tube-launched, Optically-tracked, Wire-guided
(TOW-2A) radio frequency missiles and associated parts, equipment, training
and logistical support. Of the more than 2,700 missiles 42 will be used lot
acceptance testing. The value of the sales is estimated at approximately $177
million.
Argentina successfully tests locally
designed and manufactured missile booster
December
18, 2009 - Argentina announced the successful launching of a missile booster,—identified
as Gradicom PCX-2009—in a firing range in the central province of
Cordoba and said the event represented a Òqualitative leapÓ for Argentine
missile technology.
Australian missile frigate tests SM2
missile
December
18, 2009 - Australian navyÕs guided missile frigate, HMAS Melbourne, has
demonstrated its updated air defence capability by recently test-firing a
Standard Missile (SM 2) off the Jervis Bay, Australian Defence Ministry
announced Friday.
Commander Underlines Role of Sejjil 2
Missiles in Boosting Iran's Power
December
19, 2009 - Head of the Iranian Defense Ministry's Aerospace Organization
Brigadier General Mehdi Farahi praised the country's experts for providing
the Sejjil 2 missiles with a radar-evading capability, saying that such
weapons contribute an important role in boosting Iran's deterrence power.
Iran:
We'll send our ballistic missiles to Tel Aviv
November
22, 2009 - Before the dust settles from Israel's attacks on Iran's nuclear
facilities, the Islamic Republic will send its ballistic missiles into the
very heart of Tel Aviv. This was spelled out at the weekend by a deputy of
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's representative in the Revolutionary
Guards, Mojtaba Zolnour.
Israel and U.S. Missile Defense Exercise
Counters Iran
November
23, 2009 - Riki Ellison, President and Founder of the Missile Defense
Advocacy Alliance (MDAA) discusses the relevance of the largest joint U.S. -
Israeli missile defense exercise held earlier this month in respect to the
volatility of the current and future situation in Iran and the rest of the
Middle East.
Indian Ballistic Missile Test-Launched
November
23, 2009 - India today conducted a test launch of its nuclear-capable Agni 2
ballistic missile, Agence France-Presse reported.
India Could Purchase Patriot System
November
23, 2009 - India is considering spending billions of dollars to buy U.S.-made
Patriot Advanced Capability 3 air-defense technology, United Press
International reported Friday.
U.S. Pursues Aircraft-Mounted Infrared Missile Sensor
November
23, 2009 - The United States hopes over the next five years to develop an
aircraft-mounted infrared sensor in order to improve the military's ability
to intercept enemy missiles in their early stage of flight, Military &
Aerospace Electronics reported yesterday.
Indian Ballistic Missile Test Deemed a Failure
November
24, 2009 - India's latest test-launch of its nuclear-capable Agni 2 missile
technology was said to have ended in failure, the Xinhua News Agency reported
today.
Q+A-Russia delays test of troubled Bulava
missile
November
24, 2009 - Russia on Tuesday delayed the latest test launch of its troubled
new submarine-launched Bulava intercontinental ballistic missile, the state
RIA news agency reported.
Israel Increases Arrow Production
November
24, 2009 - Israel is increasing the production of its Arrow anti-missile
missiles. Costing over three million dollars each, and partly constructed in
the United States (by Boeing), the Arrow missiles are Israel's principal
defense against Syrian and Iranian ballistic missiles.
Up to $141.4M to Lockheed Martin for
Trident Navigation System Support
November
24, 2009 - Lockheed Martin Maritime Systems & Sensors in Mitchel Field,
NY received a $62.9 million cost-plus incentive fee/ cost-plus-fixed-fee
contract to provide navigation subsystem engineering support services to the
US and UK fleet of Trident II (D5) ballistic missiles. The contract contains
options, which if exercised, would bring its cumulative value to $141.4
million.
Commander: Iran Able to Replace S-300 with
Other Air-Defense Systems
November
24, 2009 - An Iranian top military commander on Tuesday underlined that
Tehran is able to replace the Russian-made anti-aircraft S-300 missiles with
other air defense systems in case Russia shrugs off contract terms for the
delivery of S-300 missiles to Iran.
IRGC Official Stresses Deterrent Power of
Iran's Ballistic Missiles
November
25, 2009 - A senior official of
the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) on Sunday underlined the
deterrence capability of Iran's ballistic missiles, and warned enemies to
stay away from any military move against the Islamic Republic.
Agni II night trial: ÔIt was one of the
worst'
November
25, 2009 - The debacle of the first ever night trial of IndiaÕs nuclear
capable Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM), Agni-II, has put the
credibility of DRDO scientists at stake. The trial was conducted by the Army
from the Wheeler Island off Orissa coast yesterday evening.
Military's plans include missile shield
November
25, 2009 - With the planned relocation of thousands of U.S. Marines to our
island, Guam will no doubt become a bigger target for America's enemies. But according to the Draft
Environmental Impact Statement, the military's planning on building us a
massive missile shield.
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KASHMIR |
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NUCKEAR TERRORISM |
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ENERGY / CLIMATE |
Canadians
say climate change a bigger threat than terrorism: poll
OTTAWA -January 11, 2010 - Canadians believe climate change poses a significantly bigger threat to the "vital interests" of this country over the next decade than international terrorism, a new poll suggests. While nearly half of those surveyed said climate change is a "critical threat," only about one in four people said the same about international terrorism. A similar poll conducted in 2004 showed Canadians believed the two threats were about equal. The results come from a survey commissioned by the Canadian Defence and Foreign Affairs Institute and conducted by the Innovative Research Group, Inc. between Dec. 22, 2009, and Jan. 4, 2010.
Nuclear Corporation Formed in UAE
23 December 2009, 11:46 PMABU DHABI - The
President, His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has issued a
decree formally establishing the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC).
It is vested with the powers to implement all programmes of the country to
tap nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
Iran slams US at climate talkÕs lays
claim to nuclear energy
(AFP) – COPENHAGEN — Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad lashed the United States on Thursday as an oil-addicted warmonger and insisted every nation have access to "clean and renewable energy sources", including nuclear. "For about a century, oil has constituted the basic and strategic components of US security foreign policy, the same role it played for the previous empires," Ahmadinejad said at the UN climate talks in Copenhagen. "During this period, oil-rich regions of the world became the theatres of wars and military adventurism that led to foreign domination on their energy resources."
Iran to Launch 1st N. Power Plant after 3
Final Tests
TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran's first nuclear power plant in the southern city of Bushehr needs to undergo three final tests before it is put into operation, an Iranian official announced on Saturday, adding that Tehran attaches much importance to the safety of the plant rather than its hurried launch.
Iran urges IAEA to rectify approach
toward its nuclear program: FM
TEHRAN, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki urged the members of the IAEA board of governors to rectify their approach toward Iran's "peaceful" nuclear program, local Press TV reported Wednesday. In separate letters to members of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) board of governors, Mottaki said Iran will continue its nuclear program, despite the recent IAEA resolution, the report said.
Indonesia gets serious about nuclear
energy
JAKARTA: Indonesia could formally embrace nuclear power as early as next year as senior Government members push to revive a proposal to build up to four reactors just 30 kilometres from a volcano in Central Java. Indonesia is beset by regular blackouts that are crimping industrial production and deterring investors, and nuclear energy is being resurrected as a means to meet the country's growing electricity needs while also capping carbon emissions.
Nuclear expansion could cost $18.2
billion
Express-News A new informal cost update puts the price of CPS Energy's nuclear project at $18.2 billion, about $5 billion more than the utility has said is affordable for San Antonio. The update, obtained by the San Antonio Express-News, is based on numbers provided by the South Texas Project Nuclear Operating Co., which operates the existing nuclear plant outside Bay City and is a key player in the proposed expansion. The new estimate lists the cost of building two reactors at nearly $13.9 billion. That sum jumps an additional $4.3 billion when financing charges and cost escalation are figured in.
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