IRAN
Belarus Seen Aiding Breaches of Iran Sanctions
Global Security Newswire – September 15, 2011
Western nations believe Belarus has assisted Iran in circumventing U.N. Security Council resolutions aimed at halting the growth of the Middle Eastern nation’s atomic and ballistic missile activities, Reuters reported on Thursday
Belarus denies violating U.N. sanctions on Iran
Reuters Africa – September 15, 2011
Belarus on Thursday denied news reports that it was helping Iran skirt U.N. sanctions aimed at preventing Tehran from building up its ballistic missile and nuclear programs.
Iran’s ‘damaged’ president heads for UN spotlight
Brian Murphy, Associated Press – September 15, 2011
There was a time when Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad used his annual trip to the United Nations for two big objectives: Basking in the attention of America’s media hub and personally delivering the views of the Islamic Republic to Western leaders. The spotlight seeking is still there. But what’s missing this year is any sense that Ahmadinejad is still a trusted messenger for the ruling clerics after trying to expand the limits of his power and being batted down harshly.
U.S. men in Iran to be freed soon with Talabani help: envoy
Reuters – September 15, 2011
Two U.S. citizens convicted of spying in Iran will be freed soon after Iraqi President Jalal Talabani negotiated their release with Iranian officials, an Iranian daily quoted an Iraqi envoy to Tehran as saying.
NORTH KOREA
Nuclear envoys of two Koreas to meet in Beijing next week
Park Si-soo, The Korean Times – September 16, 2011
The chief nuclear negotiators of South and North Korea will meet in Beijing next week, a senior official said Friday. The meeting is viewed as a preparatory step in resuming the six-party talks aimed at ending Pyongyang’s nuclear programs. North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has suggested he may offer a moratorium on nuclear testing if the dialogue resumes.
Russia-NKorea exercise shouldn’t alter message: US
AFP – September 15, 2011
The United States said Thursday that Russia’s planned joint military exercises with North Korea should not be done in a way that undercuts international concern about its nuclear program.
South Korea arrests North Korean defector on suspicion of plotting attack on another defector
The Associated Press through the Washington Post – September 15, 2011
A North Korean defector allegedly armed with poison needles has been arrested on suspicion of plotting to attack a leading anti-Pyongyang activist, South Korean officials said Friday.
NORTH AFRICA/MIDDLE EAST
Libyan Chemical Materials a Proliferation Threat, U.S. Commander Says
Martin Matishak, Global Security Newswire – September 15, 2011
Libya’s stockpile of chemical warfare materials remains a potential source of proliferation, the U.S. military commander for Africa told reporters on Wednesday
Arab Nations Could Drop IAEA Bid to Pressure Israel
Global Security Newswire – September 15, 2011
An anticipated push by Arab governments for the International Atomic Energy Agency to demand greater nuclear transparency from Israel might be set aside in an effort to advance regional arms control dialogues, envoys told Reuters on Thursday
NUCLEAR PROLIFERATION
Nuclear Proliferation: The Crime with No Punishment?
Eben Harrell, Time Magazine – September 16, 2011
In 2003, the seizure of sensitive nuclear equipment on a ship in an Italian port played a key role in the unraveling of a vast, international smuggling ring led by the Pakistani scientist A.Q. Khan that supplied nuclear technology to some of the world’s most dangerous regimes. Prosecuting those involved in this proliferation network, however, has proved difficult. Today none of the people associated with the so-called Khan network remain in prison.
