International

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 10/31/2014 U.S. arms control advocates and nuclear deterrence experts alike are attaching little importance to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recent calls for further arms control reductions, with some suggesting that the statements were largely an effort to improve Russia’s global image and political standing. “I think Russia is feeling some pressure […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 10/31/2014 The United States should participate in the upcoming Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons, scheduled to be held in Vienna in early December, more than two dozen arms control advocates, nuclear policy experts, former U.S. government officials and leaders of peace and security organizations said in a letter sent […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 10/31/2014 The United States unsuccessfully opposed a draft resolution calling for steps to reduce the high-alert status of nuclear weapon systems during a meeting of the First Committee of the U.N. General Assembly. The United States also voted against a resolution welcoming U.N. Secretary-General consideration of a range of views on […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 10/31/2014 Many details of the Climate and Energy Policy Framework released last week by the European Commission remain unclear at this time, especially in regard to the renewal of the New Entrants Reserve funding program. The framework calls for the New Entrants Reserve 300 funding scheme to be renewed and […]

NS&D Monitor 10/31/2014 ON THE INTERNATIONAL FRONT The Russian Navy this week successfully test-launched a newly developed unarmed intercontinental ballistic missile, according to Associated Press reports. The Yuri Dolguruky SSBN test-fired the Bulava missile under the surface of the Barents Sea, and warheads hit a predetermined target range in the Kamchatka Peninsula in eastern Russia. […]

More than two dozen arms control advocates, nuclear policy experts, former U.S. government officials and leaders of peace and security organizations yesterday issued a letter to three top Obama Administration officials, calling for U.S. participation in the Dec. 8-9 Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons in Vienna. Addressed to National Security Advisor Susan […]

Deputy Secretary of State William Burns on Feb. 4, will take over as the president of The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the organization yesterday announced in a press release. After an 18-year tenure, current Carnegie President Jessica Tuchman Mathews will turn over her post to Burns, according to the release. Burns, who has served […]

Russian President Vladimir Putin said late last week that Moscow is interested in negotiating further nuclear arms reductions, potentially signaling a change in Russia’s arms control posture. According to the Russian news agency RIA Novosti, Putin made the comments Friday during a speech at the Valdai Discussion Club meeting in Sochi, Russia. “We insist on […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 10/24/2014 Modernizing the United Kingdom’s nuclear-capable submarines in the near future can be ensured only through the election of a Conservative government to replace the current parliamentary coalition of the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties, Lord Des Browne, former UK Secretary of State for Defence and current vice chair of the […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 10/24/2014 The British government is set to renew the UK-U.S. Mutual Defence Agreement (MDA), which would authorize the bilateral exchange of nuclear materials, technology and information for another 10 years if approved by both countries, according to an Oct. 20 document submitted from UK’s International Affairs and Defence Section to the […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 10/24/2014 In a continued effort to drum up support for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Rose Gottemoeller this week urged attendees of several different events at colleges in Utah and Massachusetts to spread word of the agreement’s merits and the benefits of […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 10/24/2014 Efforts to move action on the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty into international humanitarian law circles could divert attention from implementing the 2010 NPT Action Plan, and the United States would not endorse any new proposal for a nuclear disarmament outside its own plans, Amb. Robert Wood, alternate representative of the Delegation […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 10/24/2014 With six months remaining until the scheduled 2015 Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty Review Conference, advocates of the treaty this week called on the five main nuclear-weapon states (P5) to implement the 64-point 2010 NPT Review Conference Action Plan more quickly, as P5 states have moved sluggishly to implement key parts of […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 10/24/2014 The European Council announced this week a climate and energy policy framework for the European Union that calls for a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent from 1990 levels by 2030. Other targets called for in the framework include a binding target of at least 27 percent […]

RW Monitor 10/24/2014 IN THE INDUSTRY AREVA CEO Luc Oursel announced he will step down from his position citing health reasons, the company said this week. Oursel will pursue treatment for an undisclosed illness, but he told the French government he would remain available to help the transition to a new CEO. “Under these very […]

Former United Kingdom Secretary of State for Defence Lord Des Browne said it was unlikely that future prime ministers would pledge to spend money to replace nuclear-capable “boats,” not “bombs,” as was originally reported in an Oct. 21 Weapons Complex Morning Briefing article. Weapons Complex Morning Briefing regrets the error

Seventy-six Michigan communities, along with local government agencies in Canada and other U.S. states, have joined the fight against the proposed Canadian radioactive waste repository in Ontario by passing resolutions in opposition, state Sen. Phil Pavlov (D) said yesterday. Michigan state lawmakers have been vocal about their opposition to Ontario Power Generation’s proposed deep geologic […]

In a continued effort to drum up support for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Rose Gottemoeller on Tuesday urged attendees of an address at Dixie State University in St. George, Utah, to spread word about the agreement’s merits and the benefits of ratifying it. “We need […]

TEPCO announced yesterday that it has successfully begun testing its enhanced ALPS water treatment system at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The new ALPS system builds off the existing treatment system in an effort to increase treatment capacity. TEPCO already installed two additional systems in the past month. The enhanced systems should be capable […]

The United Kingdom government has drafted an extension to the UK-US Mutual Defense Agreement (MDA), which would renew the treaty and re-enable the bilateral exchange of nuclear materials, technology and information for another 10 years if approved by both countries, according to an Oct. 20 document submitted from the UK’s International Affairs and Defence Section […]

AREVA CEO Luc Oursel announced he will step down from his position because of health reasons, the company said yesterday. Oursel will pursue treatment for an undisclosed illness, but he told the French government he would remain available to help the transition to a new CEO. “Under these very difficult personal circumstances, and despite my […]

Modernization of the United Kingdom’s nuclear deterrent in the near future can be ensured only through the election of a Conservative government to replace the current parliamentary coalition of the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties, Lord Des Browne, former UK Secretary of State for Defence and current vice chair of the Nuclear Threat Initiative, told […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 10/17/2014 AUSTIN, Texas – Through the adoption of new polices, support of carbon capture and storage projects and a commitment to global cooperation, China continues to make progress toward the deployment of CCS technology, Xu Shishen, Chief Engineer with the China Huaneng Group Clean Energy Research Institute, said during a […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 10/17/2014 AUSTIN, Texas – Unique considerations exist when exploring the potential deployment of carbon capture and storage in the world’s developing nations, according to a panel of global experts participating in a discussion at the International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Technologies, held here last week. Because of the global nature […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 10/17/2014 Stockpiled nuclear material around the world continues to be a nuclear security threat, and the international community should not wait on the U.S. and Russia to strengthen nuclear material verification measures, Corey Hinderstein of the Nuclear Threat Initiative told attendees of a State Department-hosted briefing at U.N. headquarters this week. […]

NS&D Monitor 10/17/2014 In DoD Air Force Brig. Gen. John Cherrey has been promoted to take Maj. Gen. Michael A. Keltz’s former position of director of intelligence, operations and nuclear integration at Headquarters Air Education and Training Command at Joint Base San Antonio in Randolph, Texas, according to an Oct. 9 Defense Department press release. […]

Japan’s International Research Institute for Nuclear Decommissioning (IRID) re-issued a Request for Proposals yesterday for a feasibility study on technology capable of investigating the reactor pressure vessel at the Fukushima Daii-chi Power Station. IRID had issued the original RFP last month with a due date of Oct. 3 for submittals, but according to IRID, “the […]

The following interview with Tore Amundsen, Chairman of the CO2 Technology Centre Mongstad (TCM), was conducted by GHG Reduction Technologies Monitor Reporter Abby L. Harvey on the sidelines of this year’s International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Technologies, held this week in Austin, Texas. GHG Monitor 10/10/2014 To start things off, can you provide some information […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 10/10/2014 The government of Norway has restructured its carbon capture and storage deployment strategy to focus on supporting a full-scale CCS demonstration project elsewhere in the European Union instead of within its own boarders, the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy announced this week. Work to develop a full-scale demonstration […]

Abby L. Harvey GHG Monitor 10/10/2014 The province of Alberta’s new Premier Jim Prentice stated that he will not support new CCS projects in Alberta during string of interviews this week and last. Emily Wood, Press Secretary for Prentice’s office, told GHG Monitor late this week that during the interviews, “the Premier said he was […]