U.S. Officials: India’s Nuclear Explosive Materials Vulnerable to Theft

India’s nukes are at risk - The agency tasked with guarding India’s nuclear weapons and materials “is short-staffed, ill-equipped, and inadequately trained,” write Adrian Levy and R. Jeffrey Smith in a new in-depth report for the Center for Public Integrity. The reporters uncovered evidence that, “weapons and technical equipment lagged well behind comparable security forces elsewhere in the world.”

--“An estimated 90 to 110 Indian nuclear bombs are stored in six or so government-run sites,” which are guarded by the paramilitary Central Industrial Security Force (CISF). However, the report shows that U.S. government officials and experts alike believe that the agency is inadequately equipped, and that “India’s nuclear explosive materials are vulnerable to theft.”

--“The Nuclear Threat Initiative, a nonprofit group in Washington, reported last year… that India’s nuclear security practices ranked 23rd among 25 countries that possess at least a bomb’s-worth of fissile materials. Only Iran and North Korea fared worse in the analysis.” The report found that, “weaknesses are particularly apparent in the areas of transport security, material control, and accounting, and measures to protect against the insider threat.’” Full story here. http://bit.ly/1Oar5fM

Recognizing the violation - “[Although] Iran’s recent ballistic missile tests… violate UN Security Council Resolution 1929, they are not a violation of the... [Iran] nuclear deal,” write Kelsey Davenport, Greg Thielmann and Daryl G. Kimball for Arms Control Now. “There should be consequences for [the] violations... However, U.S. policymakers should put the risks posed by the missile tests in perspective and pursue effective actions that address the violation, but do not undermine progress toward reducing Iran’s nuclear potential.”

--“Although Iran has stated its commitment to abiding by the terms of the July 14 nuclear deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Iran has repeatedly asserted that it does not and will not in the future accept UN Security Council-imposed limits on its ballistic missile program, which it says is necessary for its own self-defense… U.S. officials have recently said that while Iran continues to test and develop medium-range ballistic missiles, it is at least a decade away from developing and testing an intercontinental-range ballistic missile.”

--”In a Dec. 17 letter to President Barack Obama, a group of 35 Republican senators say the United States should respond to the missile tests by suspending U.S. sanctions relief as called for under the terms of the nuclear deal. Such a move would be counterproductive. It would be a violation of U.S. commitments under the nuclear deal, provide Iran with an excuse to stop implementation of its obligations under the deal, and would in the long-term increase, not reduce the risks posed by Tehran’s ballistic missiles.” Read the full article here. http://bit.ly/1mfCeiN

Tweet - @Cirincione: If you thought Trump was dumb on the triad, read his twisted fantasy of the #IranDeal. Not even close to reality. http://bit.ly/1OIK9fu

Kerry quells visa concerns - “A new United States visa restriction that applies to Europeans and others who have visited so-called high-risk countries has led to angry reactions in Iran, where some leaders say the decision is a violation of the nuclear agreement reached in July,” reports Thomas Erdbrink for The New York Times. “Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister, told state media on Monday that the visa restriction was an ‘obstacle, placed by some individuals,’ that he hoped would soon be resolved.”

--Mr. Zarif referenced a letter sent by Secretary of State John Kerry on Saturday that reads, “‘We will implement [visa restrictions] so as not to interfere with legitimate business interests of Iran’… The letter, obtained and leaked by the National Iranian American Council, an advocacy group based in Washington, hinted that President Obama would use his executive authority to exempt Iran from the visa restriction, which was passed almost unanimously in Congress. Mr. Obama signed it into law on Friday.” Get the full story here. http://nyti.ms/1S842SF

See also - “Text: Sec. Kerry Letter to Zarif Regarding Visa Waiver Reform” at National Iranian American Council. http://bit.ly/1mfEczA

Russia vows nuclear weapon improvement - In a documentary aired on state television, Russian president Vladimir Putin commented, “Russia as a leading nuclear country will be improving... [nuclear weapons] as a containment factor; the nuclear triad is the basis of our nuclear security policies” referencing the three primary delivery systems for nuclear warheads - bombers, intercontinental ballistic missiles and submarine-launched ICBMs.

--“We have never brandished or will brandish this nuclear club,” said Putin. “But our military doctrine allocates it a place and role... Over the past three years, companies of the military-industrial complex have created and successfully tested a number of prospective weapons systems that are capable of performing combat missions in a layered missile defense system… And now we are talking about development of new types of weapons.” Get the full story from Alexei Druzhinin at CBS News here. http://cbsn.ws/1QDhmyT

Tweet - @ReThinkDefense: Security at Japan’s #nuclear power plants is being questioned in the wake of terrorist threats: http://bit.ly/1m66gGa

Los Alamos lab operators fail to renew contract - “The private consortium that runs Los Alamos National Laboratory will not have its contract renewed after it ends Sept. 30, 2017,” writes Justin Horwath for the Santa Fe New Mexican. “The consortium is currently in negotiations with the federal government that could extend the $2.2 billion annual contract beyond 2017, even as the contract is put back up for bid. The decision not to renew the contract follows a blistering series of federal investigations and performance evaluations involving the lab’s safety record after a drum from the lab burst and leaked radiation.” Read the full story here. http://bit.ly/1RDtT5y

Tweet - @ArmsControlNow: Get the real facts on the current U.S. nuclear weapons modernization spending. bit.ly/2276bSU

Quick Hits:

--“Iran Nuclear Agreement Faces ‘Significant Turbulence,’” by Barbara Slavin for Voice of America. http://bit.ly/1O6rRsi

--“Air Force Nuclear War Game Tests Future Bomber Fleet,” by Lara Seligman for Defense News. http://bit.ly/1Ym6wBQ

--“Pakistan’s army is building an arsenal of ‘tiny’ nuclear weapons—and it’s going to backfire,” by C. Christine Fair for Quartz. http://bit.ly/1PhxZNk

--“Bringing Back the Russo-American Axis,” by Leslie H. Gelb, Robert Gard and John Johns, for Foreign Policy. http://atfp.co/1YyMNto

--“In Romania, US Wraps Construction of Anti-Missile Battery,” by Marcus Weisgerber for Defense One. http://bit.ly/1Oli9V2