Nuke Storage Gets an Upgrade Outside Seattle

Nukes stored near Seattle - “The U.S. Navy has quietly built a new $294 million underground nuclear weapons storage complex at the Strategic Weapons Facility Pacific (SWFPAC), a high-security base in Washington that stores and maintains the Trident II ballistic missiles and their nuclear warheads for the strategic submarine fleet operating in the Pacific Ocean,” writes Hans Kristensen for the Federation of American Scientists.

--“The SWFPAC and the eight Ohio-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs) homeported at the adjacent Bangor Submarine Base are located only 20 miles (32 kilometers) from downtown Seattle. The SWFPAC and submarines are thought to store more than 1,300 nuclear warheads with a combined explosive power equivalent to more than 14,000 Hiroshima bombs.” Read the full article here. http://bit.ly/28XTu5k

Growing opposition to LRSO - “Two opinion pieces by opponents — House Armed Services Ranking Member Adam Smith in Foreign Policy and Senate Intelligence Committee Vice-President Dianne Feinstein in the New York Times — ripped the Long-Range Stand-Off Weapon as expensive, wasteful and dangerously escalatory… ‘I want to make sure the Pentagon isn’t using the cloak of modernization to hide the fact they are building a new nuclear weapon,’ Feinstein said in a statement,” write Joe Gould and Aaron Mehta for Defense News.

--“According to Kingston Reif of the Arms Control Association, the overwhelming majority of Democrats in the House have voted to either kill or delay the LRSO, and on the Senate side, a growing number of Democrats, led by Feinstein and nuclear disarmament proponent Sen. Ed Markey, of Massachusetts, oppose it.” Full piece here. http://bit.ly/298l0CU

Tweet - @IISS_org: Who in their right mind would promote nuclear proliferation? A "terrible idea", argues @FitzpatrickIISS http://bit.ly/290kSVj

Mission must shrink with arsenal - “The next president, Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump, will have to make hard decisions about whether to go ahead with the current, enormously costly, U.S. nuclear weapons modernization plan, though neither has spoken about it, nor have they been seriously questioned about it. It may be just too complex for a presidential campaign, but it will be one of the first serious policy and budget decisions that the new president will face after taking office,” writes Walter Pincus for The Cipher Brief.

--Former assistant secretary of defense Andy Weber “pointed out cutting numbers won’t solve the budget problem. ‘The savings, whether you buy 12 [new strategic submarines] or 10 boats or 8 boats, those savings won't be realized until the 2040s, 2050s, a long way away,’ he said. Instead of budgets, Weber said, it’s ‘requirements [that] determine the size and timing of the force structure and the operations to force structure,’ adding, ‘The requirements for nuclear weapons are made by one individual — the president of the United States.’” Full article here. http://bit.ly/291lS8Q

Visit shows Iranian commitment to nonproliferation - “Iran’s vice president and nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi paid a visit last month to the Czech Republic, where he met with several officials including Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka and Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek. The purpose of the trip was to develop a bilateral nuclear cooperation between Iran and the Czech Republic … The Czech visit is one of several signs that Iran is sticking to its commitments under the international nuclear deal made last year,” writes Farnaz Alimehri for the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists. Full article here. http://bit.ly/297RZ8F

Missile defense technology isn’t ready - “The technical obstacles of an unshackled, limitless ballistic missile-defense program should give reason for pause. There is a dedicated constituency in Congress already chomping at the bit over the prospect of increased spending and branching out into technology areas that previously consumed billions of dollars without much to show for,” writes the Defense News Editorial Board.

--“Tests of the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense system, the terrestrial arm of the architecture, have seen mixed results over the past years, and critics argue that the test conditions don’t come close a real-world intercept scenario — limited or not … Congress should let the science play out on missile defense before rushing for an expansion.” Full editorial here. http://bit.ly/291l18F

China blocks India’s NSG bid - “China maintains its opposition to India joining a group of nations seeking to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons by controlling access to sensitive technology, said the head of the arms control department in China's Foreign Ministry. The Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) met this week in Seoul, but China said it would not bend the rules and allow India membership as it had not signed the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the main global arms control pact,” writes James Pearson for Reuters.

--“‘Applicant countries must be signatories of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of nuclear weapons (NPT),’ Wang Qun, the head of arms control department in China's Foreign Ministry, was quoted as saying in Seoul on Thursday night… Opponents argue that granting India membership would further undermine efforts to prevent proliferation. It would also infuriate India's rival Pakistan, an ally of China's, which has responded to India's membership bid with one of its own.” Full article here. http://reut.rs/28UN0I2

See also - “Senator Markey Praises Nuclear Supplier Group for Refraining from Allowing Indian Participation,” a press release from Senator Ed Markey (D-MA). http://1.usa.gov/29kuTcB

Rapid movement needed on North Korea - “History has shown that it is far easier to convince North Korea to negotiate away a military capability it does not yet possess. Washington’s stated primary concern is a North Korean nuclear-armed intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). Pyongyang will achieve this capability if it is not reined in through a diplomatic agreement or understanding. Once Pyongyang achieves this status, the security balance in Asia will be disrupted and U.S. diplomats will be hard-pressed to convince North Korea to abandon the capability,” writes Elizabeth Phillip for the Arms Control Association. Full policy brief here. http://bit.ly/291BxoS

Quick Hits:

--“A-bomb survivor hugged by Obama trusts promise will be kept,” by Mari Yamaguchi for the AP. http://wapo.st/295o2HL

--“Brexit could put future of Britain’s only nuclear sub base in doubt,” by John Vandiver for Stars and Stripes. http://1.usa.gov/28Wmv1d

--“NATO Secretary General appoints Rose Gottemoeller as next Deputy Secretary General,” from NATO. http://bit.ly/28XZnA7

--“The lessons of the Iran deal,” by Senator Chris Coons for CNN. http://cnn.it/291qc8y

Events:

--“The Iran Nuclear Deal After One Year,” featuring Barbara Slavin, Atlantic Council; and Kate Gould, Friends Committee on National Legislation. June 28 from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. Webinar sponsored by women's Action for New Directions. Register here. http://bit.ly/28Ivd41

--“The JCPOA: Looking Ahead After One Year,” featuring William Burns, former Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, and seven other speakers. June 29 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Carnegie Endowment, 1779 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington. RSVP online. http://ceip.org/1UxNvc7

--The Public Policy and Nuclear Threats Summer Boot Camp at the University of California, San Diego from June 19 to June 29. Ploughshares Fund President Joe Cirincione will speak on “Modernization Plans for U.S. Nuclear Forces” at 9 a.m. June 29. More information here. http://bit.ly/28Q39Ma

--“After the Prague Agenda: The Future of U.S. Nuclear Security,” with Frank Klotz, Administrator, National Nuclear Security Administration. June 30 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the World Affairs Council, 312 Sutter St., Suite 200, San Francisco. Register online. http://bit.ly/291nqA6

--“Nuclear Policy for the Next Administration,” with Christopher Peble, Cato Institute; Kelsey Davenport, Arms Control Association; Steven Pifer, Brookings Institute; and moderated by Joseph Cirincione, Ploughshares Fund. July 6 at 6:00 p.m. at the American Foreign Service Association, 2010 E St. NW, Washington. http://bit.ly/1ZOcqs3

--James Timbie Forum for Arms Control and Nonproliferation. At the State Department (July 14) and George Washington University (July 15). RSVP online. http://bit.ly/28Mit1u

Dessert:

Swimming with nuclear sharks - Watch ABC News investigate the sharks that survived the aftermath of the Bikini Atoll nuclear tests. http://abcn.ws/29kDdJE