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☆ Putin orders tactical nuclear weapon drills to deter the West
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-06 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Russia's defense ministry said it would hold military drills including practice for the preparation and deployment for use of non-strategic nuclear weapons. "During the exercise, a set of measures will be carried out to practice the issues of preparation and use of non-strategic nuclear weapons," the ministry said. Russia and the United States are by far the world's biggest nuclear powers, holding more than 10,600 of the world's 12,100 nuclear warheads. No power has used nuclear weapons in war since the United States unleashed the first atomic bomb attacks on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. Major nuclear powers routinely check their nuclear weapons but very rarely publicly link such exercises to specific perceived threats in the way that Russia has.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Alexey Danichev, Natalia Kolesnikova, Joe Biden, Andriy Yusov, Sergei Shoigu, Emmanuel Macron, Volodymyr Zelensky, Ludovic Marin, David Cameron, Dmitry Peskov, Putin, Abrams, Sean Gallup Organizations: Federal Assembly's Council, Reuters, Missile, Southern Military District, Military, Victory Day, Afp, Getty, Russian Federation, Federation of American Scientists, CNN, Ukraine, Kremlin, U.S . Senate, AFP, British, NATO, U.S . Army, British Amphibious Engineer Battalion Locations: Saint Petersburg, Russia, Reuters Russia, Moscow, France, Britain, United States, Ukraine, U.S, China, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Russian, Paris, London, Soviet Union, Gniew, Poland

☆ Nuclear War: The Rising Risk, and How We Stop It - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( W.J. Hennigan | W.J. Hennigan Writes About National Security For Opinion. | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +6 min

The United States estimates Russia has a stockpile of up to 2,000 tactical nuclear warheads, some small enough they fit in an artillery shell. But the detonation of any tactical nuclear weapon would be an unprecedented test of the dogma of deterrence, a theory that has underwritten America’s military policy for the past 70 years. Possessing nuclear weapons isn’t about winning a nuclear war, the theory goes; it’s about preventing one. If Mr. Putin dropped a nuclear weapon on Ukraine — a nonnuclear nation that’s not covered by anyone’s nuclear umbrella — what then? Many in the administration believed the Kremlin’s dirty bomb ploy posed the greatest risk of nuclear war since the 1962 Cuban missile crisis.

Persons: Putin, Sergei Shoigu, Lloyd Austin, Russia Sergei Shoigu, Britain Ben Wallace, Defense Turkey Hulusi Akar, Sebastien Lecornu, General Austin, Mark Milley, Biden, Putin’s, William J, Burns Organizations: United, of American, NATO, Defense, State, Defense Turkey, National Defense, Defense Minister American, Russian, Biden, Joint Chiefs, Staff, Moscow, White House, State Department, The Energy Department, Strategic Command, ’, Pentagon, Unmute Defense, Central Intelligence Agency Locations: Washington, Ukraine, Russia, United States, Kharkiv, Kherson, Russian, U.S, Crimean, Moscow, Poland, China, India, Turkey

These are among the reasons why there was alarm this week over reports that Russia may be pursuing nuclear weapons in space. So much of the country's infrastructure is now dependent on U.S. satellite communications — and those satellites have become increasingly vulnerable. Photos You Should See View All 33 ImagesTHE PAST: STARFISH PRIME AND PROJECT KBoth Russia and the U.S. have detonated nuclear warheads in space. The U.S. and the Soviet Union signed a nuclear test ban treaty a year later, in 1963, which prohibited further testing of nuclear weapons in space. The creation of the Space Force elevated spending on satellite systems and defenses.

Persons: Stephen Schwartz, Ariel, Hans Kristensen, ” Kristensen, John Kirby, John Ferrari, DeAnna Burt, Pat Ryder, Ferrari, ” Ferrari Organizations: WASHINGTON, Aviation, Russia, U.S, of Atomic Scientists, Starfish Prime, of Defense, Radio, Federation of American Scientists, Soviet Union, House, American Enterprise Institute, U.S . Space Force, NRO, National Reconnaissance Office, Pentagon, Space Force, Defense Department Locations: Russia, China, U.S, Hawaii, British, Ukraine

☆ White House confirms US has intelligence on Russian anti-satellite capability
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Michael Williams | Kevin Liptak | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Washington CNN —The White House on Thursday confirmed that the national security threat flagged by the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee the previous day is related to “an anti-satellite capability that Russia is developing,” but sought to soothe concerns about the danger it presents to the United States. “This is not an active capability that’s been deployed,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Thursday. “There was notifications from the intelligence community that made it just clearer now than before,” Crenshaw said. “This was just the time.”The post from Turner called on President Joe Biden to declassify “all information” related to the threat. Kirby said the US intelligence community had “serious concerns” about a broad declassification of intelligence related to the threat.

Persons: that’s, John Kirby, ” Kirby, Mike Turner of, Turner, Matt Gaetz, “, Andy Ogles, Ogles, Kirby, Donald Trump, Dan Crenshaw, Crenshaw, ” Crenshaw, Joe Biden, declassify, Biden, Hans Kristensen, CNN’s Morgan Rimmer, Oren Liebermann, Katie Bo Lillis Organizations: Washington CNN, House Intelligence, ” National Security, House Intelligence Committee, Republican, Turner, Ukraine, Russia, Reuters, GOP, Intelligence, Texas Rep, Federation of American, CNN, 2022 Defense Intelligence Agency Locations: Russia, United States, Mike Turner of Ohio, Florida, ”, Tennessee, Ukraine, Russian

☆ Russia Has No Plans to Deploy Nuclear Arms Beyond Belarus, Says Deputy Minister
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

By Dmitry Antonov and Guy FaulconbridgeMOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia will not deploy nuclear weapons abroad except in its ally Belarus but will find ways to counter any deployment of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons in Britain, the deputy minister in charge of arms control said on Thursday. President Vladimir Putin said last year that Moscow had transferred some tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus, blaming what he casts as a hostile and aggressive West for the decision. Asked by reporters if Russia would deploy nuclear weapons beyond Belarus, for example in South America, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said: "No, it is not planned." Separately, Ryabkov told Russia Today in an interview that U.S. plans to deploy tactical nuclear weapons to Britain would not deter Moscow. Neither Britain nor the United States have confirmed reports of the planned deployment of tactical nuclear weapons.

Persons: Dmitry Antonov, Guy Faulconbridge MOSCOW, Vladimir Putin, Sergei Ryabkov, Ryabkov, Putin, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy's, Guy Faulconbridge, Gareth Jones Organizations: Federation of American Scientists, North Atlantic Alliance, NATO, Russia Today Locations: Russia, Belarus, Britain, Moscow, South America, Israel, Gaza, United States, Suffolk, England, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Turkey, Ukraine, China, India, Brazil, South Africa, Kyiv

☆ Russia's use of North Korean missiles in Ukraine could be a 'cash cow' for Kim Jong Un, expert says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-19 | by ( Thibault Spirlet | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewRussia's use of North Korean ballistic missiles in Ukraine could boost missile sales for Kim Jong Un's government, a military analyst told The Wall Street Journal. Last week, South Korea's ambassador to the UN accused North Korea of using Ukraine as a "test site" for its nuclear-capable missiles. "This is the cash cow," Dalton said, adding that now "North Korea will be able to command a premium for these systems in ways it wasn't before." Fragments of what may be North Korean missiles used by Russia in an attack on Kharkiv, Ukraine, on January 6, 2024. "If Ukraine, for example, proves more successful in shooting down North Korean missiles compared to Russian ones, then we can assume that North Korean technology is not as advanced," he said.

Persons: —, Kim Jong, Joonkook Hwang, John Kirby, Toby Dalton, Dalton, Ramon Pacheco Pardo, Pardo, Bruce Bechtol, Bechtol, Yoo Sang, Andriy Kostin Organizations: Service, Wall Street, Business, UN, National Security, Nuclear, Carnegie Endowment, Getty, King's College London, Federation of American Scientists, Angelo State University in, country's Intelligence Service, CNN, Suspilne, Meduza Locations: Korean, Ukraine, South, Korea, Russia, North Korea, Kharkiv, Iran, Angelo State University in Texas, South Korea, Japan

☆ Militant Rocket Hit Base Linked to Israeli Nuclear Missile Program
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( Riley Mellen | More About Riley Mellen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A rocket most likely fired by Hamas militants during their Oct. 7 attack on Israel struck an Israeli military base where, experts say, many of the country’s nuclear-capable missiles are based, according to a visual analysis of the attack’s aftermath by The New York Times. While the missiles themselves weren’t hit, the rocket’s impact, at the Sdot Micha base in central Israel, sparked a fire that approached missile storage facilities and other sensitive weaponry. Israel has never acknowledged the existence of its nuclear arsenal, though Israeli whistle-blowers, U.S. officials and satellite imagery analysts all agree that the country possesses at least a small number of nuclear weapons. Hans Kristensen, director of the Federation of American Scientists’ Nuclear Information Project, told The Times that he estimates there are most likely 25 to 50 nuclear-capable Jericho missile launchers at the base. According to experts and declassified U.S. government documents, Israel’s Jericho missiles are equipped to carry nuclear warheads.

Persons: Hans Kristensen Organizations: New York Times, Federation of American Scientists, Times Locations: Israel

☆ Turkey calls for international conference to reach permanent peace in Middle East
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan arrives to attend Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, November, 11, 2023. Saudi Press Agency/Handout via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsANKARA, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday that an international peace conference should be convened to find a permanent solution to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. Erdogan was addressing a joint Islamic-Arab summit in Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh, where leaders gathered to urge Israel to end hostilities in Gaza. A permanent solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestinians depends on the formation of a Palestinian state based on 1967 borders, Erdogan said. "We believe that an international peace conference will provide the most suitable basis for this.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Abdel Fattah al, Sisi, Israel, Amihay Eliyahu's, Benjamin Netanyahu, Eliyahu, Huseyin Hayatsever, Kirsten Donovan, Christina Fincher Organizations: Islamic Cooperation, Saudi Press Agency, Handout, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Saudi Arabia's Crown, Israel's, International Atomic Energy Agency, Federation of American, Thomson Locations: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Rights ANKARA, Israel, Saudi Arabia's, Gaza, Turkey, United States, Britain, Palestinian

☆ Russia says Israeli nuclear remark raises 'huge number of questions'
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

"This has raised a huge number of questions," Maria Zakharova, Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman, was quoted as saying by state RIA news agency. Israel does not publicly acknowledge it has nuclear weapons though the Federation of American Scientists estimates Israel has about 90 nuclear warheads. "Question number one - it turns out that we are hearing official statements about the presence of nuclear weapons?" If so, she said, then where are the International Atomic Energy Agency and international nuclear inspectors? Tomorrow is late," Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said on platform X on Monday.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Amihay Eliyahu, Eliyahu, Maria Zakharova, Zakharova, Israel, Hossein Amirabdollahian, Guy Faulconbridge, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: Sunday, Federation of American, International Atomic Energy Agency, U.S, UN Security Council, Reuters, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Israel, Gaza, Iran

SummaryCompanies New nuclear submarine nearly ready for serviceRussia building more submarinesKremlin: relations with Washington 'below zero'MOSCOW, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Russia's new strategic nuclear submarine, the Imperator Alexander III, has successfully tested a Bulava intercontinental ballistic missile, the Russian defence ministry said on Sunday. The Imperator Alexander III is the seventh of the Russian Project 955 Borei (Arctic Wind) class nuclear submarines and the fourth of the modernised Borei-A variant, according to Russian sources. They are known in NATO as the Dolgoruky class of submarines, after the first boat - the Yuri Dolgoruky - became the first new generation of nuclear submarine launched by Russia since the Cold War. [1/2]Russia's new nuclear-powered submarine Imperator Alexander III test launches the Bulava ballistic missile, designed to carry nuclear warheads, from the White Sea, in this screengrab taken from a video released on November 5, 2023. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview aired on Sunday that relations with the United States were below zero.

Persons: Imperator Alexander III, Alexander III, Yuri Dolgoruky, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, Dmitry Donskoy, Potemkin, Lidia Kelly, Guy Faulconbridge, William Mallard, David Goodman Organizations: Federation of American Scientists, Navy, Russian, Russian Defence Ministry, REUTERS Acquire, Soviet Union, Northern, Thomson Locations: Russia, Washington, MOSCOW, Russian, NATO, Soviet, Ukraine, United States, Pacific, Melbourne, Moscow

Many civil society leaders told CNBC the order does not go far enough to recognize and address real-world harms that stem from AI models — especially those affecting marginalized communities. "One of the thrusts of the executive order is definitely that 'AI can improve governmental administration, make our lives better and we don't want to stand in way of innovation,'" Venzke told CNBC. Mitchell wished she had seen "foresight" approaches highlighted in the executive order, such as disaggregated evaluation approaches, which can analyze a model as data is scaled up. Even experts who praised the executive order's scope believe the work will be incomplete without action from Congress. For example, it seeks to work within existing immigration law to make it easier to retain high-skilled AI workers in the U.S.

Persons: Kamala Harris applauds, Joe Biden, Maya Wiley, Biden, Kamala Harris, Cody Venzke, Venzke, Margaret Mitchell, Mitchell, Joy Buolamwini, Divyansh Kaushik, Kaushik Organizations: White, Conference, Civil, Human, CNBC, American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU, League, Federation of American Locations: Washington ,, Washington , DC, New York, U.S

Putin, who is to visit China this week, said the United States had stoked tensions with Beijing by building the "AUKUS" security alliance of U.S., Australia and Britain and that Russia and China were not building a military alliance. "Moreover, to fight with both Russia and China, it is nonsense - I don't think it is serious. Putin cautioned that if the United States fought against Russia then it would be very different to the war in Ukraine that the Kremlin calls a special military operation. "And if they want to fight with Russia then it will be a completely different war - it will not be carrying out a special military operation," Putin said. Of those, Russia has about 1,674 deployed strategic nuclear warheads while the United States has 1,670.

Persons: Janet Yellen, Mark Schiefelbein, Putin, Vladimir Putin, Pavel Zarubin, Joe Biden, Biden, William Mallard, Hugh Lawson Organizations: U.S . Congress, Kremlin, U.S, Federation of American Scientists, Thomson Locations: United States, Diaoyutai, Beijing, China, Russia, Washington, China MOSCOW, Ukraine, Moscow, U.S, Australia, Britain

“Russia’s thinly veiled threats to use nuclear weapons remind the world that escalation of the conflict – by accident, intention, or miscalculation – is a terrible risk. New Construction at Russia's Novaya Zemlya nuclear test site, June 22, 2023. Lop Nur nuclear test site. “The Chinese test site is different than the Russian test site,” Lewis said. Both countries keep their strategic nuclear arsenals on “hair-trigger” alert, meaning that nuclear weapons can be launched on short notice.

Persons: Jeffrey Lewis, James Martin, ”, Cedric Leighton, “, Vladimir Putin, ” Lewis, Lewis ’, António Guterres, ” Guterres, Dmitry Medvedev, Putin, Alexander Lukashenko, Sergei Shoigu, Lewis, we’ve, Leighton, they’d, ” Leighton, Nur, Hans Kristensen, Kristensen, Israel –, Dyess, Frederic J . Brown, Fiona Cunningham, Yang Kun, ” Daryl Kimball, Kimball, Michael Frankel, James Scouras, George Ullrich, Soviet Union –, Russia –, We’re Organizations: CNN, James, James Martin Center, Nonproliferation Studies, Middlebury Institute of International Studies, US, US Air Force, Atomic Scientists, Soviet Union, United Nations, Russia’s Security, Russian Defense Ministry, Planet Labs PBC, Middlebury, Science and Global Security, Novaya, Middlebury Institute, China Observer, China’s Foreign Ministry, Planet Labs, Nevada National Security, National Security Administration, US Department of Energy, Office, National Security Council, International Monitoring, Federation of American Scientists, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Missile Defense, Center for Strategic, International Studies, Columbia, Northrop Grumman's Air Force, Getty, Control Association, ACA, NGO, PLA, Nuclear, Carnegie Endowment, International, Arms Control Association, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Soviet Locations: Russia, United States, China, Xinjiang, Nevada, . China, Moscow, Washington, Ukraine, Soviet, Belarus, Minsk, Novaya Zemlya, Zemlya, Soviet Union, Lop Nur, Japan, Lop, Beijing, Stockholm, United Kingdom, France, India, Pakistan, North Korea, Israel, Ellsworth, Palmdale , California, AFP, Yuli County, Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Baltimore, Russian, Hiroshima

In September, Medvedev said strategic nuclear weapons could be used to defend territories incorporated into Russia from Ukraine. And in January, as NATO member states debated new weapons shipments to Ukraine, Medvedev said defeat for Russia in the war could lead to nuclear conflict. “The loss of a nuclear power in a conventional war can provoke the outbreak of a nuclear war,” Medvedev wrote on Telegram in January. Nuclear rhetoricThe United States has previously warned Russia against using nuclear weapons in Ukraine, both through private direct communications, as well as public channels, including at last year’s UN General Assembly. Russia has about 4,477 deployed and reserve nuclear warheads, including around 1,900 tactical nuclear weapons, according to the Federation of American Scientists.

Persons: Dmitry Medvedev, Vladimir Putin, ”, Medvedev, ” Medvedev, ” Medvedev’s, Putin, Matthew Miller, Alexander Lukashenko, Lukashenko Organizations: CNN, NATO, Russia’s Security, Helsinki, Russia, “, Russia’s Defense, UN, Assembly, St ., Economic Forum, US Defense Intelligence Agency, US State Department, Federation of American Scientists Locations: Russia, Russian, Ukraine, Sweden, Finland, Turkey, Western, Moscow, United States, Belarus, St, St . Petersburg

☆ US intel officials: ‘No reason to doubt’ Putin claims Russia has moved nuclear weapons to Belarus
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Natasha Bertrand | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) has “no reason to doubt” Russian President Vladimir Putin’s claim that Russia has moved a first batch of tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus, senior DIA officials said on Friday. It is not clear how much of that arsenal Putin intends to move, and US and Western officials have not publicly confirmed that any weapons have been transferred to Belarus. But the senior DIA officials told a small group of reporters Friday that analysts have “no reason to doubt” Putin’s claims, and no reason to doubt “that they have had some success” in transferring the weapons. But the senior DIA officials said they do not believe Lukashenko would have any control over the arsenal. It would most likely be entirely controlled by Russia, the officials said.

Persons: Vladimir Putin’s, Putin, ” Putin’s, Ben Wallace, ”, Putin “, Wallace, Matthew Miller, “, Aleksander Lukashenko, Lukashenko, Miller Organizations: CNN, The Defense Intelligence Agency, St ., Economic, Federation of American Scientists, British, State Department, Nuclear Weapons, ”, Russian Locations: Russian, Russia, Belarus, St, St . Petersburg, Soviet

☆ A space race on the Korean Peninsula
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +13 min

It was not until 2013 that it became the first South Korean rocket to place a satellite in orbit. SPACE CENTRES Russia also helped South Korea build its Naro Space Center while training and launching the first South Korean astronaut on a mission to the International Space Station. In his first summit with former U.S. President Donald Trump in 2018, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un promised to dismantle Sohae, but as talks stalled, North Korea expanded the site. North Korea faces the same challenges, and must avoid flying over South Korea. “The road from South Korea to space has opened now,” President Yoon Suk Yeol said after the 2022 Nuri launch.

Persons: Kim Jong, Moon Jae, Nuri, Jonathan McDowell, Markus Schiller, Schiller, “, ”, ” Schiller, Robert Schmucker, Pyongyang’s, McDowell, KARI, Donald Trump, Kim Jong Un, Dave Schmerler, James Martin, “ Sohae, ” McDowell, Korea’s Nuri, Yoon Suk Yeol Organizations: North, South Korean, U.S, Harvard – Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, REUTERS, Elon, SpaceX, South, Soviet, Federation of American Scientists, Carnegie Endowment, International Peace, Space Center, International Space, Korea Aerospace Research, James, James Martin Center, Nonproliferation Studies, International Maritime Organization Locations: Seoul, Pyongyang, South Korea, North Korea, Korean, Japan, China, Korea, Washington, United States, Russia, Naro, Europe, U.S, Britain, Switzerland, Soviet Union, Soviet, Cholsan County, South Korean, South, Tonghae, North Korea’s, Sohae, Indonesia, Philippines, Okinawa

☆ 'Oppenheimer' fact v. fiction: A nuclear historian breaks down what the movie got right and wrong
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Jenny Mcgrath | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +18 min

J. Robert Oppenheimer was an immensely complex figure, and the movie's based on a biography of him. Fact: Oppenheimer mocked Strauss about isotopesJ. Robert Oppenheimer testifies before the Senate in October 1945. Fact: A big thunderstorm delayed the Trinity TestOppenheimer (Cillian Murphy) stands next to the test bomb in "Oppenheimer." If it weren't for the atomic bomb, Oppenheimer would likely be best known for bolstering theoretical physics at the University of California, Berkeley. Fiction: Oppenheimer consulted Einstein about Teller's calculations(L-R) Tom Conti as Albert Einstein and Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer in "Oppenheimer."

Persons: Christopher Nolan's, Oppenheimer, Robert Oppenheimer, J, Alex Wellerstein, Kai Bird, Martin Sherwin, Wellerstein, Niels Bohr wasn't, Patrick Blackett, Bird, Sherwin, Blackett, Niels Bohr, Ernest Rutherford, Bohr, Oppenheimer's, Cillian Murphy, Abraham Pais, Baudelaire, e.e, cummings, who's, Haakon Chevalier, Peter, Peter Oppenheimer, Kitty, Haakon, Barbara Chevalier, Robert, Perro, Werner Heisenberg, peppering Bohr, Heisenberg, Strauss, David Hill, Lewis Strauss, Dwight D, David Inglis, Inglis, I've, Arthur Compton, Trinity Test Oppenheimer, Jack Hubbard, Leslie Groves, Hubbard, Feynman, Richard Feynman, I'm, Groves, Robert Serber, David Bohm, Philip Morrison, Willis Lamb, Hitler, Hartland Snyder, Kip Thorne, John Wheeler, Roger Penrose, Penrose, Murphy, Trinity, there's, —, Karl T, Compton, Stimson, Henry Stimson, that's, Harry Truman, Wallenstein, Einstein, Tom Conti, Albert Einstein, Melinda Sue Gordon, Edward Teller, Hans Bethe, Enrico Fermi, Bethe, Roger Robb, He's, Teller, Stanislaw Ulam, Gordon Dean, Charlotte Serber, Charlotte Serber's, she's, Serber Organizations: Service, Manhattan Project's Los Alamos Laboratory, Stevens Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Eisenhower's, Federation of American Scientists, Time, Atomic Energy Committee, Trinity Test, Trinity, Los, University of California, Clovis, National Security Research, Manhattan Project . National Security Research, FBI Locations: Wall, Silicon, England, Leiden, Holland, New Mexico, Perro Caliente, Los Pinos , New Mexico, Germany, Nazi, Denmark, Sweden, Los Alamos, Europe, Berkeley, Poland, Amarillo , Texas, Japan, Kyoto, Alamos

☆ Live updates: Russia's war in Ukraine, NATO assurances to Zelensky
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Brad Lendon | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

"We informed the nuclear powers — the US, UK and France — that Russia cannot ignore the capability of these planes to carry nuclear weapons,” Lavrov told Lenta.RU. “Our troops cannot figure out, whether each individual plane of this type is equipped for the delivery of nuclear weapons or not. The very fact of this type of system appearing in the Armed Forces of Ukraine will be viewed by us as a threat by the West in the nuclear sphere." Some context: The F-16 is a multirole aircraft and can be configured to carry tactical nuclear weapons. But any F-16s that might possibly be transferred to Ukraine would not be nuclear capable, Hans Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project with the Federation of American Scientists, told Business Insider last month.

Persons: Sergey Lavrov, ” Lavrov, Lenta.RU, Volodymyr Zelensky, Mark Rutte, ”, Lloyd Austin, Hans Kristensen Organizations: NATO, West, Kremlin, France, Armed Forces, Dutch, US, Atomic Scientists, Federation of American Locations: Moscow, Kyiv, Russian, Kremlin Russian, France —, Russia, “, Ukraine, Belgian, Dutch, Europe

☆ Exclusive: Wagner fighters neared Russian nuclear base during revolt
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +20 min

Reuters GraphicsOnce the Wagner fighters reach more rural regions, the surveillance trail goes cold – about 100 km from the nuclear base, Voronezh-45. But in an exclusive interview, Ukraine's head of military intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, said that the Wagner fighters went far further. The only barrier between the Wagner fighters and nuclear weapons, Budanov said, were the doors to the nuclear storage facility. It is one of Russia's 12 "national-level storage facilities" for nuclear weapons, according to a report by U.N. scientists. Another female resident also said Wagner had widespread support in the town, and that many Wagner fighters are from Boguchar.

Persons: Wagner, Ukraine's, Kyrylo Budanov, Budanov, Alexander Lukashenko, Adam Hodge, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Matt Korda, Vladimir Putin's, Hans Kristensen, David Jonas, Amy Woolf, Jonas, Prigozhin, Dmitry Utkin, Putin, Sergei Shoigu, Staff Valery Gerasimov, Shoigu, Oleksiy Danilov, Don, Anna Sandrakova, Maxim Yantsov, Mikhail Vedernikov, Talovaya, Alexei Yablokov, Kristensen, Alexsandr Lukashenko, Dmitry Peskov, Lukashenko, he's, Mari Saito, Tom Balmforth, John Shiffman, Phil Stewart, Polina, Maria Tsvetkova, Anton Zverev, Christian Lowe, David Gauthier, Stephen Grey, Reade Levinson, Eleanor Whalley, Milan Pavicic, Daria Shamonova, Janet McBride Organizations: Reuters, Kremlin, Belarusian, U.S, White, National Security, Nuclear, Federation of American, Federation of American Scientists, U.S . National Nuclear Security Administration, Library, Congress, Wagner, State, Staff, Russian, Defence Ministry, Defence Council, Main, Russian Defence, U.S . Congress, Telegram, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Russian, Voronezh, United States, Ukraine, Russia, Rostov, Talovaya, Soviet, Washington, dabble, Syria, Libya, Mali, ., Pavlovsk, Elizavetovka, Vorontsovka, Buturlinovka, Talovaya district, Pskov, Soviet Union, Belarus, Minsk, he's, St Petersburg, Kyiv, London, New York, Paris, Villars, Istanbul, Gdansk

NUCLEAR WEAPONS? Amid today's Ukraine war, the biggest land war in Europe since 1945, the town is again being enclosed by the tentacles of distant tumult. "No one is ever going to tell you where the tactical nuclear weapons are stationed - you should understand that," Kasinsky said. He repeatedly refused to confirm or deny whether the nuclear weapons were outside Osipovichi. "You should not try to make some sort of horror story out of the tactical nuclear weapons," said Kasinsky.

Persons: Wagner, Vladimir Putin, Mikhail Gorbachev, Alexander Lukashenko, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Prigozhin, Leonid Kasinsky, Kasinsky, Osipovichi, Hans Kristensen, Vladimir Lenin, Ilya Petrov, Lukashenko, Guy Faulconbridge, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Putin, Town, Bolshevik, Foreign, Belarus OSIPOVICHI, Red Army, U.S . Central Intelligence Agency, Federation of American Scientists, CIA, Communist, Thomson Locations: Belarus, Belarusian, Russia, Osipovichi, Tsel, Russian, Minsk, Ukrainian, Grand Duchy, Lithuania, Nazi Germany, Ukraine, Europe, Moscow, West

Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin is not even in Belarus, Lukashenko told CNN – he is in Russia, Lukashenko claimed. Available satellite imagery has also not shown any signs of the kind of preparations and security that would be standard at a Russian nuclear facility. Russia has the world’s largest arsenal of nuclear weapons, with 4,477 deployed and reserve nuclear warheads, including around 1,900 tactical nuclear weapons, according to the Federation of American Scientists. “Putin does not need tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus to use those weapons,” Bergmann added. “But it is concerning to the US that tactical nuclear weapons could potentially be co-located in Belarus with Wagner fighters.

Persons: Wagner, Alexander Lukashenko, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Lukashenko, CNN –, Alexander Zemlianichenko, Vladimir Putin, Putin, ”, Max Bergmann, “ Putin, ” Bergmann, Lukashenko’s, Alexander Nemenov, Angela, Prigozhin, Leonid Kasinsky, ” Lukashenko Organizations: CNN, Wagner Group, Wagner PMC, Federation of American Scientists, Center for Strategic, International Studies, Directorate of, Ministry of Defense, Soviet Union, Experts, NATO, European Union, Lithuanian President’s Communication, Georgetown University, Kremlin, Wagner, Russian Ministry of Defense Locations: Russia, Europe, Belarus, Russian, Minsk, Belarusian, Tsel, Soviet, Vilnius, Lithuania, AFP, Poland, Belarus US, St . Petersburg

☆ Wagner Revolt Weakened Putin, Made Nuclear War Less Likely
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The Wagner rebellion weakened Russian President Vladimir Putin, experts say. His reduced standing could make him even less likely to order a nuclear strike in Ukraine. US officials stress that while Russia's occasional nuclear brinksmanship can be alarming, it appears to be purely rhetorical. "We haven't seen any change in Russia's nuclear posture," Secretary of State Antony Blinken told CBS in a June 25 appearance, a remark that comes not only after the Wagner revolt but Russia's decision to place some tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. In recent weeks, Ukrainian officials have accused Russia of planning to sabotage the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

Persons: Wagner, Vladimir Putin, —, hasn't, Russia wasn't, wasn't, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner's, Putin, Hans Kristensen, hadn't, Kristensen, Antony Blinken, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, à, Pavel Podvig, Podvig Organizations: Service, Street Journal, Federation of American, CBS, United Nations ' Institute for Disarmament Research Locations: Russian, Ukraine, United States, Russia, nukes, Belarus, Ukrainian, Moscow

☆ Russia mercenary threat revives concern over nuclear arsenal security
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-24 | by ( Jonathan Landay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

To be sure, U.S. officials say they do not see an immediate threat to the security of Russia's strategic and tactical weapons. "We have not seen any changes in the disposition of Russian nuclear forces," said a National Security Council spokesperson in response to questions from Reuters. U.S. intelligence agencies said in their 2023 Annual Threat assessment that "Russia's nuclear material security ... remains a concern despite improvements to material protection, control, and accounting at Russia's nuclear sites since the 1990s." Russia’s nuclear arsenal is the world’s largest, estimated in 2022 at 5,977 warheads by the Federation of American scientists, compared to an estimated 5,428 held by the U.S. “This has always been a super-high (U.S.) intelligence collection priority and the command and control of nuclear weapons in Russia,” said Hoffman.

Persons: Wagner, Alexander Ermochenko WASHINGTON, group's, Wagner's, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin's, Marc Polymeropoulos, you’re, Ramzan, Kadyrov, Daniel Hoffman, Dmitry Peskov, Hoffman, “, Putin, ”, Jonathan Landay, Don Durfee, Daniel Wallis Organizations: Southern Military District, REUTERS, CIA, National Security, Reuters, Federation of, U.S, Thomson Locations: Rostov, Don, Russia, Moscow, Washington, Europe, Eurasia, U.S, Washington . U.S, Ukraine, United States

He has also said that there could be "nuclear weapons for everyone" who joined the Russia-Belarus union. Putin said Russia would remain in control of the weapons just as the United States controls its own tactical nuclear weapons deployed in Europe. Putin has repeatedly raised concerns about the 200 U.S. B61 tactical nuclear warheads deployed at bases in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Turkey. Russia's nuclear weapons are controlled and transported by the 12th Main Directorate of the defence ministry (12th GUMO). By putting nuclear weapons back in Belarus, Putin is showing that the architecture of post-Cold War nuclear arms control is crumbling.

Persons: Stringer, Vladimir Putin, Moscow's, Putin, Pavel Zarubin, Su, Lukashenko, Jens Stoltenberg, Guy Faulconbridge, Nick Macfie Organizations: REUTERS, Kremlin, Street, Ukraine, Sukhoi, of American, WHO, United, NATO, B61, U.S, 12th, Directorate, State Department, Thomson Locations: Kakhovka, Nikopol, Ukraine, Dnipropetrovsk region, MOSCOW, Belarus, Russia, Soviet Union, Britain, United States, Belarusian, Lida, Lithuanian, Europe, U.S, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Turkey, Kazakhstan, States

☆ Russia's claim that Ukraine could get nuclear-capable F-16s is baseless fearmongering, expert says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Sinéad Baker | Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russia made the bizarre claim that F-16s being given to Ukraine could be fitted with nuclear weapons. Ukraine has no nuclear weapons, and the F-16s it may get won't have that capacity anyway, he said. While F-16 jets can be made to carry nuclear weapons, Ukraine does not have any nuclear weapons in its arsenal. And none of Ukraine's allies who have given it weapons and military training since Russia's invasion in February 2022 have suggested they will give Ukraine nuclear weapons. Kristensen added: "There's no way at all that any nuclear state in the West would give nuclear weapons, or nuclear weapons capability, to Ukraine.

Persons: —, Sergei Lavrov, Ukraine's, John Kirby, Joe Biden, Kirby, Lavrov, Hans Kristensen, Kristensen, that's, It's, Vladimir Putin, Dmitry Medvedev Organizations: Service, US, Reuters, Federation of American Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Soviet Union, Belarus, Europe

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