Another Nuclear “Mishap”

“Mishap” damaged nuke in 2014 - “In the spring of 2014, as a team of experts was examining what ailed the U.S. nuclear force, the Air Force withheld from them the fact that it was simultaneously investigating damage to a nuclear-armed missile in its launch silo caused by three airmen,” Robert Burns writes for The Associated Press.

--“The Air Force said that while three airmen were troubleshooting the missile, a ‘mishap’ occurred, causing $1.8 million in damage to the missile. The service declined to explain the nature of the mishap, such as whether it caused physical damage, saying the information is too sensitive to be made public. The three airmen were immediately stripped of their certification to perform nuclear weapons duty. The missile was taken offline and removed from its silo … More than a year later the three airmen were recertified and returned to duty.”

--“The Air Force denied an AP request for the accident investigation report in 2015 under the Freedom of Information Act. Hans Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists, said Saturday the fact that the Hagel review group was not told about the accident ‘raises questions about what other accidents and incidents may have been overlooked by that investigation.’” Read the full story here. bit.ly/1Qz5xZZ

Misguided Missiles - “Americans are in near-panic over the danger posed by Islamic terrorists. That danger, however, pales beside an emerging new one. President Obama has proposed a frighteningly wrongheaded plan to ‘modernize’ our nuclear arsenal at the unfathomable cost of about $1 trillion over the next 30 years. Terror will never reach even 1 percent of our population. Nuclear ‘modernization’ increases the prospect of true devastation,” writes Stephen Kinzer for The Boston Globe.

--Former Secretary of State William Perry has been at the forefront of those arguing against the modernization plan. “Perry is campaigning against Obama’s plan to develop and buy 1,000 new missiles with adjustable nuclear capacity, 100 new long-range bombers, and a new fleet of nuclear-armed submarines. He warns that if the plan becomes real, disputes among nations will be ‘more likely to erupt in nuclear conflict than during the Cold War.’” Find the full piece here. http://bit.ly/1Pvqik3

More praise for the Iran Deal - “Today, thanks to the historic nuclear deal that the United States and its partners reached with Iran in July 2015, it would take Tehran over a year to obtain enough enriched material for a bomb. Moreover, by requiring Iran to rip out over 13,000 centrifuges and cap its stockpile of enriched uranium, the deal ensures that timeframe will remain in place for well over a decade,” writes Kelsey Davenport for The Hill.

--“An innovative element of the agreement prevents Iran from conducting certain explosive activities and experiments that are relevant to designing a nuclear weapon. This is a permanent restriction that Tehran agreed to, going beyond its international obligations... Tehran will not be able to conduct these activities and then insist that the applications were for non-nuclear purposes. If Iran is caught with its hand in this cookie jar, it will be a clear violation of deal, regardless of the reasoning or explanation.” Read the full article here. bit.ly/1PAiNi5

Tweet - @Cirincione: Landmark nuclear agreement with Iran: a hopeful beginning. bit.ly/1nlEiX2

How do we talk to our adversaries? -“We have just witnessed one of the most consequential weeks for U.S.-Iran relations since diplomatic ties were broken in 1980, amid the Iranian hostage crisis. Last week began as it ended: with the release of captives… The events seemed to bridge some international divisions, but they also resurfaced a bitter divide in the United States over one key question: What’s the best way to deal with enemies?” Uri Friedman writes for The Atlantic.

--Obama’s philosophy bears some similarity to Nixon’s approach toward China. “In an Oval Office meeting shortly before [his trip to China], Nixon, a staunch anti-communist, explained his rationale for reaching out to Beijing to administration officials and the Dutch prime minister… Nixon wanted to get to know the Chinese not despite the ‘enormous differences’ in ideology and interests between the capitalist and communist giants, but precisely because of them. The stakes were too damn high to choose righteous blindness over some degree of visibility into a key Cold War player.’” Full story here. theatln.tc/1V9erMX

Tweet - @HassanRouhani: In a letter to the Heads of P5+1 states: Glad we achieved #IranDeal. Hope obligations are carried out in a timely manner according to #JCPOA

Jeb! says no to nukes - “I think there should be a goal… a Reagan-esque goal if you will — of elimination of all nuclear weapons in the world,” presidential hopeful Jeb Bush said at a campaign event last week in New Hampshire. “I think that is not a naive aspiration.”

--“The new threat that exists is not the old Soviet-U.S. mutually assured destruction threat,” Bush said. “The new threat is the proliferation of weapons in the hands of people who aren’t going to follow the international standards that exist.” He quoted the danger posed by nuclear programs in Pakistan, North Korea and Iran as evidence, and said the U.S. “should be engaged in the world to lessen the potential for a nuclear holocaust.” John Hudson has the full story for Foreign Policy. http://atfp.co/1K3RQRc

Longtime anti-nuke protester dies - “Concepcion Picciotto, the protester who maintained a peace vigil outside the White House for more than three decades, a demonstration widely considered to be the longest-running act of political protest in U.S. history, died Jan. 25 at a housing facility operated by N Street Village, a nonprofit that supports homeless women in Washington. She was believed to be 80,” writes Caitlin Gibson for the Washington Post.

--“In a 2013 profile in The Washington Post, Ms. Picciotto said she spent more than 30 years of her life outside the White House ‘to stop the world from being destroyed.’ Through her presence, she said she hoped to remind others to take whatever action they could, however small, to help end wars and stop violence, particularly against children.” Find the story here. wapo.st/1TkuDwj

Doomsday Clock to change - “Scientists behind a ‘Doomsday Clock’ that measures the likelihood of a global cataclysm are set to announce Tuesday whether civilization is any closer or farther from disaster. The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists is expected to unveil the minute hand on the metaphorical clock in Washington, D.C. The clock reflects how vulnerable the world is to catastrophe from nuclear weapons, climate change and new technologies, according to the bulletin,” reports the Associated Press. Full story here http://bit.ly/1OMIsR7

Historic nuke waste settlement - The state of New Mexico and the federal government have agreed to $74 million in settlements, “the largest ever negotiated between a state and the Energy Department,” over violations “stemming from a radiation leak that forced the closure of the nation’s only underground nuclear waste repository.” The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, which was closed in 2014, houses radioactive waste left from the production of nuclear weapons. Full story here. http://wapo.st/1WMKuDD

Tweet - @ArmsControlNow: #FactSheet: Nuclear Testing and CTBT Timeline, 1945-2016 http://bit.ly/1UoSedw

Quick Hits:

--“Cost Estimates Rise for UK Submarine,” by Kingston Reif for Arms Control Today. http://bit.ly/1OVKk7X

--“Nine nations have nuclear weapons: Here is how many each country has,” by Amanda Macias of Business Insider for The Independent. http://ind.pn/20oQ41d

--“Nuclear Cybersecurity: Why we should worry,” letters to the editor of The New York Times by Edwin Lyman, Kathryn Rauhut and Debra Decker.nyti.ms/1PvAnDT

Events:

--Address to the United Nations Association of the United States, Palm Beach County Chapter by Ploughshares Fund President Joe Cirincione. Jan. 27 from 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Royal Poinciana Chapel, 60 Cocoanut Row, Palm Beach. Details here. http://bit.ly/1S8FWZu

--“Defense Outlook: A CSIS Series on Strategy, Budget, Forces and Acquisition,” featuring Kathleen Hicks, Todd Harrison, Andrew Hunter and Mark Cancian, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Jan. 27 from 10:00 a.m.- 12:00 p.m. at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW, Washington. RSVP online. http://bit.ly/1S8LhQH

--“Energizing Nuclear Security: A Sensible Summit Proposal,” featuring Michael Wautlet of the National Security Council, Roger Howsley of the World Institute for Nuclear Security, Clayton Scott of Schneider Electric, Paul Murphy of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP, and Jack Edlow of Edlow International. Jan. 28 from 2:00 - 3:30 p.m. at the Stimson Center, 1211 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, Eighth Floor. RSVP here. http://bit.ly/1SIajWm

--“Challenges in Implementing the JCPOA: A Personal Perspective,” featuring Gideon Frank, former Director General, Israel Atomic Energy Commission. Jan. 28 from 4:30-6:00 p.m. at the Vienna Center for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, VCDNP Conference Room, Donau-City-Strasse 6, Andromeda Tower, Floor 13/1, Vienna. RSVP online. http://conta.cc/1K8vuyb

--“Pin-Down Diplomacy: How Wrestling Promotes US-Iran Ties.” Featuring Gregg Sullivan from the State Department, Bahman Baktiari of the International Foundation for Civil Society; James Ravannack of USA Wrestling; and Christina 'Kiki' Kelley from USA Wrestling Greco-Roman Team. Moderated by: Barbara Slavin of the Atlantic Council. Feb. 2 from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Located at the Atlantic Council, 1030 15th Street NW, 12th Floor, Washington, DC 20005. RSVP here: http://bit.ly/1SxeNz9

Dessert:

That’s no moon... it’s a boondoggle! - “I’ve previously commented on the Star Wars saga’s hyper-realistic portrayal of how defense technology is developed. Specifically, I pointed out that the most realistic thing in the first six episodes was that the Death Star construction was behind schedule… I’m happy to report that Star Wars Episode VII continues to demonstrate a nearly pathological commitment to realistically depicting the defense acquisition business,” writes Dan Ward for War is Boring.

--“Sure, the previous attempts did not work out very well, but in a bureaucratic acquisition environment, the first two failures are no reason to cancel plans for a third version. In the unassailable logic of large enterprises, the losses of Death Stars #1 and #2 only serve to justify making #3 larger, because clearly the problem with the earlier designs is that they weren’t big enough.” Full article here. http://bit.ly/23qRJG7