Archive for Nuclear Proliferation

Russian pundits: Still calm about Korea?

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(Russia Beyond the Headlines -  www.rbth.ru – Ekaterina Zabrovskaya, Yelena Kim, RBTH – April 10, 2013) Regardles of the fact that Russian pundits are concerned by growing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, most argue that a full-scale war will not break out. Although the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs has advised diplomatic missions to leave the country by April 10 and Russian experts are concerned by mounting tensions on

Lavrov accuses N. Korea of blatantly violating UN Security Council resolutions

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(Interfax – MOSCOW, April 10, 2013) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused North Korea of blatantly violating a UN Security Council resolution and warned that Moscow will consistently seek to calm the situation down. “Certainly, it is unacceptable when a state – in this particular case the DPRK, a UN member – openly and blatantly violates a UN Security Council resolution. We have repeatedly talked about this with other

The Dangers of the Korean Crisis

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(RIA Novosti – April 9, 2013 – Fyodor Lukyanov) Fyodor Lukyanov is Editor-in-Chief of the Russia in Global Affairs journal, authoritative source of expertise on Russian foreign policy and global developments. The world is once again looking toward the Korean Peninsula with apprehension, though at this point it should be used to Pyongyang’s routine threats to wipe its enemies off the map. This time North Korea appears resolved to show

The Iranian dossier: Negotiations edge forward

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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Andrei Ilyashenko, special to RBTH – April 10, 2013) The negotiations on the Iranian nuclear issue in Kazakhstan allowed sides to discuss specific mutual demands in an earnest exchange of opinions The new round of negotiations on the Iranian issue failed to bring any tangible results. Still there is obvious progress ­ the sides have finally arrived at the crux of the matter.

North Korea views its nuclear potential as security guarantee – diplomat

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(Interfax – MOSCOW, April 8, 2013) North Korea does not want to become another target for the U.S. after Syria and therefore it needs reliable security guarantees, a North Korean diplomatic source said in reply to a question from Interfax concerning reasons for Pyongyang’s increasingly militant rhetoric in relation to the U.S. and South Korea of late. “Washington has often said lately that it has always badly understood North Korea’s

Tensions on the Korean peninsula bring Russia and China closer

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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Andrei Ilyashenko, special to RBTH – April 1, 2013) Andrei Ilyashenko is a columnist on the Middle East issues for several Russian media and military magazines. For Moscow and Beijing the consequences of North Korea’s posturing in recent months could turn into a major security issue. North Korean propagandists recently posted a YouTube video under the title, “A firestorm will come crashing down

North Korea seeks recognition of its de facto nuclear status – expert

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MOSCOW. Feb 18 (Interfax) – If South Korean reports on North Korean preparations for the next nuclear test are correct, this would indicate that North Korea want to strike a deal with the United States as an equal and receive a nuclear status similar to that of India, head of the Korean Studies Center at the Russian Academy of Sciences Institute for Far East Studies Alexander Zhebin told Interfax on

U.S. State Dept slammed for looking into ‘routine matters’ of Russian politics

Russian Foreign Ministry Building Tower file photo

MOSCOW. Feb 14 (Interfax) – A Russian deputy foreign minister has slammed the U.S. State Department for what he argued is too much attention to “routine matters” in Russia’s foreign policy. “It’s surprising that routine matters should be attracting such close attention, including public attention,” Sergei Ryabkov told Interfax on Thursday in comments on a statement by a State Department official that Secretary of State John Kerry had been unable

DPRK nuclear tests may prompt other states to quit non-proliferation regime – expert

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MOSCOW. Feb 12 (Interfax) – North Korean nuclear tests endanger regional and global security, Carnegie Moscow Center Nuclear Non-Proliferation Program Coordinator Pyotr Topychkanov said. “If Japan and South Korea obtain convincing evidence to support the development of nuclear weapons in North Korea, violations of the non-proliferation regime may start in the region. For instance, Japan may be prompted to acquire nuclear arms,” he said. North Korean nuclear tests “play against

Russia, U.S. can sign new agreement on WMD instead of Nunn-Lugar program – daily

File Photo of Nuclear Mushroom Cloud

MOSCOW. Feb 4 (Interfax) – The normalization of relations between Russia and the United States may begin with practical cooperation in resisting the spread of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), the daily Kommersant wrote on Monday. The United States would like to return relations with Russia back on track and is thinking about ways this could be done. According to a source from the Russian delegation, U.S. Vice President Joe

North Korean ‘political survival champs’ wish to swap nuke program for security guarantees – Russian expert

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(Interfax – January 24, 2013) The North Korean National Defense Commission said on Thursday that North Korea could carry on satellite launches and nuclear tests. This means to retaliate against the United States and indicates that Pyongyang intends to exchange nuclear program concessions for security guarantees from Washington, Russian State Duma International Affairs Committee First Deputy Chairman, political expert Vyacheslav Nikonov told Interfax on Thursday. “North Korea is true to

U.S. missile defense threatens to nullify Russian nuclear potential – Putin

Missile Defense Control Room file photo

MOSCOW. Dec 20 (Interfax) – Russia’s disregard of U.S. missile defense deployment may damage the national nuclear missile potential, President Vladimir Putin told a press conference on Thursday. “As we have said before, the creation of such systems by our partners is a threat. It may nullify our nuclear missile potential unless we do something,” he said. The global strategic balance, which has been protecting mankind from large military conflicts

Putin Pictured in Hell on The Economist Cover

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(Moscow Times – December 20, 2012 – http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/putin-pictured-in-hell-on-the-economist-cover/473430.html) The cartoon’s accompanying article, which is presented as a travel guide, says the quickest way to hell is by constantly committing major sins without giving in to feelings of remorse. President Vladimir Putin was pictured in hell on the cover of The Economist‘s last issue for 2012, floating along in a fiery river with Syrian President Bashar Assad, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,

NEWSLINK: Russia nuclear envoy makes snap visit to Iran

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(Russia nuclear envoy makes snap visit to Iran – AFP – November 15, 2012 – click here for full article) AFP covers a visit to Tehran by Russian nuclear envoy Sergei Ryabkov: Ryabkov, who is also deputy foreign minister, met Saeed Jalili, who said Tehran “hopes for a swift return of the P5+1 countries to the negotiating table,” the official news agency IRNA reported. The recognition of Iran’s right to

Israel Might Strike Iran After U.S. Presidential Elections – Russian Analyst

Map of Iran with Stylized Radar Sweep and Radiation Symbol Background Image

“Israel Might Strike Iran After U.S. Presidential Elections – Russian Analyst” – Interfax-AVN – Sept. 11, 2012 [click here to read original article] Interfax-VN cites Alexei Arbatov, former Duma member and current head of the International Security Center under the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO), as suggesting that Israel might launch a war against Iran after the November U.S. presidential election, perhaps by

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