Iran Pushes for 2015 Nuclear Compliance

Iran eyes year-end nuclear compliance - “Iran will fulfill its commitments under the July nuclear agreement with major powers in time to have sanctions, that have crippled its economy, lifted by the end of the year, its atomic energy chief said on Thursday. President Hassan Rouhani reaffirmed last week he expected sanctions to be lifted by year-end, paving the way for the return of the biggest economy to the global trading and financial system since the end of the Soviet Union in 1991”, reports Aaron Sheldrick for Reuters.

--“Iran has begun work to remove uranium enrichment centrifuges as part of the landmark agreement, Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran announced this week… Most analysts expect this process, which began on Oct. 18, to take at least four to six months, but Rouhani has repeatedly said he expects sanctions to be lifted in December.” Get the full story here. http://reut.rs/1Qg1DnO

Human rights and the Iran deal - “The deal was approved in mid-October after an extremely heated debate in the Iranian Parliament in which Iranian opponents argued the deal served American interests at Iran’s expense... As polls consistently showed, the Iranian people overwhelmingly supported the nuclear deal, since it offered relief from the sanctions strangling Iran’s economy and dangled the prospect of greater openness to the world”, writes Matt Duss for The Nation.

--“Iran’s human rights–activist community was quite vocal during this process, and was particularly helpful in building support for the deal in Washington. In return, it’s hugely important that those of us who have backed the negotiations not forget them, and maintain a strong focus on their plight… Giving Iran a pass on human rights now would affirm [the hardliners] argument, and further empower the hardliners against their moderate political opponents. This could have serious negative implications for the survival of the deal in Iran”. Read the full story here. http://bit.ly/1HceVQc

Rouhani pushes back on hardliners - “Iranian President Hassan Rouhani criticized in remarks published Thursday the recent arrests of journalists amid an ongoing crackdown on expression by the country's hard-liners. According to a report in the state-owned daily IRAN, Rouhani said hard-liners ‘misuse’ remarks by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on the possible spread of U.S. influence in Iran as an excuse for the detentions”, according to an article in The New York Times.

--“‘We shouldn't detain one or two people, here and there, while exaggerating the case and saying there is a 'current' (U.S.) infiltration in Iran,’ Rouhani said… Earlier in the week, the semi-official Fars news agency reported the arrests of five Iranian journalists, including two known reformists. The detentions follow the arrest of others, including two poets and a filmmaker.” Read the full story here. http://nyti.ms/1Pp1Q7B

Tweet - @toby_dalton: Some good question on what Pakistan needs for deterrence from @dawn_com dawn.com/news/1216721

Trident vote challenges UK NATO membership - “Calls have been made for the SNP and Labour to oppose UK membership of Nato following a landmark vote in the Scottish Parliament against the replacement of Trident,” reports Kathleen Nutt for The National. “Patrick Harvie, co-convener of the Scottish Greens, said it was inconsistent of the two parties to support being in the alliance which backs the use of nuclear weapons while taking a stand against them.”

--Harvie explained, “It’s true that most Nato members don’t hold nuclear weapons within their own territory, but all are required to sign up to the same strategic concept, which includes a commitment to maintain an active nuclear weapons system within the alliance, and which refuses to adopt a No First Strike commitment… To support that nuclear policy but insist on merely moving the weapons makes no sense. The Scottish Greens have consistently held an anti-Nato, anti-Trident position.” Full story here. http://bit.ly/1l90wus

Tweet - @ArmsControlNow: #ArmsControlToday coverage → #NATO Weighs Nuclear Exercisesbit.ly/1Wz37cy

Italy rejects India’s MTCR bid - “India’s bid to join [the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR),] a multilateral regime designed to [“prevent the spread of missiles and unmanned systems capable of delivering weapons of mass destruction”,] failed last month when its application was blocked by Italy, an official who attended the meeting said. The official said... Italy’s objection to India’s membership… was likely motivated by a bilateral dispute between Rome and New Delhi unrelated to the regime”, writes Kelsey Davenport.

--“Vikas Swarup, spokesman for the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, said on Oct. 9 that the application was well received but ‘remains under consideration’... The United States backed India’s bid for membership and affirmed its support prior to the plenary in a Sept. 22 statement on U.S.-Indian relations... The Obama administration voiced support for Indian membership five years ago and has consistently supported it since then.” Read the full story in Arms Control Today here. http://bit.ly/1NugwlG

Steps to strengthen the Iran deal- “In April 2007, a shipment of sodium perchlorate bound for Iran was detoured to an Asian port and then returned to the country of origin. Six months earlier, in November 2006, a shipment of chromium-nickel steel plates were interdicted en route to Iran and returned to the supplier country. Both materials can be used for the development of ballistic missiles and were shipped to Iran in contravention of UN Security Council resolutions”, writes Kelsey Davenport for Arms Control Now.

--“These two cases epitomize the achievements of the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), which has been instrumental in identifying and interrupting numerous transfers of technology and materials relevant to developing weapons of mass destruction (WMD), since its inception in 2003… Bolstering mechanisms like PSI could provide a further and longer-lasting check against the importation of prohibited dual-use technologies.” Read the full article here. http://bit.ly/1HttdqF

Japan stalled in push to abolish nukes - “Japan received a shocking wake-up call to global realities on Nov. 2 after going all-out to push its resolution in the United Nations on abolishing nuclear weapons… Last year, the United States and Britain served as co-sponsors of the resolution. But this year, those two nations not only declined to co-sponsor the resolution, they also abstained from the vote in the First Committee. France also abstained even though it voted in favor of last year’s resolution”, according to the Asahi Shimbun.

--“The resolution also encouraged leaders of the world to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki to see for themselves the damage caused by such weapons… The inclusion in this year’s resolution of references to the ‘humanitarian consequences’ of nuclear weapons may have led to the change in Washington’s position... The nuclear powers, including the United States, have looked warily at such trends, and that may have served as background to the new view of the Japanese resolution.” Get the full story here. http://bit.ly/1MIbUJS

Tweet - @RadioFreeTom: This is long read on USAF case for new cruise #nuclear weapons, but it shows how confused our nuke doctrine is now. http://bit.ly/1GNohC8

Quick Hits:

--“Caught On Tape: U.S. Army Jeep Rear-Ends A Nuke,” by Tyler Durden at Zero Hedge.http://bit.ly/1NQamKZ

--“A nuclear war between India and Pakistan is a very real possibility,” by David Barno and Nora Bensahal for Quartz India. http://bit.ly/20wX513

--“Syria peace talks would be nowhere without Iran nuclear deal,” by Ross Harrison and Alex Vatanka for The National Interest. http://bit.ly/1iFpSy5

Events:

--“Peacebuilding, Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament,” featuring Dr. Peter Kuznick, Kevin Martin and Rev. Bruce Knotts. Sunday, November 8th from 1:30 - 3:45 PM at All Souls Church, 1500 Harvard Street NW, Washington, DC 20009. http://bit.ly/1Md124N

--“Bridging the Military Nuclear Materials Gap,” featuring Joan Rohlfing and Andrew Bieniawski of the Nuclear Threat Initiative. Tuesday, November 10th from 4:00 - 6:00 PM at House of Sweden, 2900 K Street NW, Washington, DC 20007. RSVP here. http://bit.ly/1KUhgdz

--“Nuclear Detonation Effects in an Urban Area,” featuring John Mercier. Tuesday, November 10th from 12:00 - 1:30 PM at Department of Science and Technology in Society at Virginia Tech, Virginia Tech Research Center, 900 N. Glebe Road, Arlington, VA. RSVP here. http://bit.ly/1KXP39b

--“Stimson Debate: Nuclear Weapons and International Stability,” featuring Ward Wilson and Elbridge Colby. Thursday, November 12th from 12:30 - 1:30 PM at the Stimson Center, 8th Floor, 1211 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC. RSVP here. http://bit.ly/1GGdWaM