IRAN
Iran ready to halt 20% nuclear enrichment: Ahmadinejad
AFP – October 5, 2011
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Tuesday reiterated Tehran’s readiness to “immediately” stop production of low enriched uranium of 20 percent, provided world powers give it the nuclear material.
U.K. Defense Chief Cites Iran’s Nuclear Risk
Alistar MacDonald, WSJ – October 4, 2011
U.K. Defense Minister Liam Fox said a nuclear-armed Iran would trigger an arms race in the Middle East, one of the world’s most unstable regions. Speaking at the Conservative Party’s annual conference, Mr. Fox said Iran was a huge danger to the U.K. and that the world shouldn’t rule out any option, including military action, to stop its advance.
Iran Could Boost Uranium Enrichment if Exchange Plan Fails
Global Security Newswire – October 4, 2011
Iran on Tuesday warned it would begin manufacturing atomic fuel at a faster pace if other governments continue to reject an exchange of nuclear material the Middle Eastern nation proposed last year with Turkey and Brazil, Deutsche Presse-Agentur reported.
SOUTH & NORTH KOREA
Seoul taps Wi as ambassador to Russia
Kim Young-jin, Korea Times – October 4, 2011
Seoul has tapped its chief nuclear envoy as its new ambassador to Russia, promoting his deputy to take his place, the foreign ministry said Wednesday. Wi, formerly the chief negotiator at the stalled six-party talks on North Korea’s denuclearization, will be replaced by Lim Sung-nam, who has served as diplomatic minister to Beijing.
The Free Trade Agreement Could Spoil South Korea’s State Visit
Victor D. Cha, Foreign Affairs – October 5, 2011
Relations between Washington and Seoul have never been better. But if the two do not reconcile differences on North Korea and seal the deal on a Free Trade Agreement, the alliance will suffer.
SYRIA
Turkey to Place Sanctions on Syria
Ayla Albayrak, WSJ – October 5, 2011
Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdo?an said Wednesday that his country would push ahead with planned sanctions on Syria, despite the veto of a United Nations Security Council condemning the regime in Damascus a day earlier.
China, Russia vetoes thwart U.N. Security Council resolution on Syria
CNN – October 4, 2011
Russia and China blocked efforts of other major powers to pass a U.N. Security Council resolution on Syria Tuesday, with a dramatic dual veto thwarting a call for an immediate halt to the crackdown in Syria against opponents of President Bashar al-Assad. Nine of the 15-member council countries, including the United States, voted in favor of adopting the resolution.
UNITED STATES
U.S. warns NATO over spending cuts, security
David Alexander and David Brunnstrom, Reuters – October 5, 2011
The United States warned its NATO allies on Wednesday that sharp cuts in military spending on both sides of the Atlantic risked “hollowing out” the alliance in a way that could be devastating to U.S. and European security.
Panetta Softens Gates NATO Plea With Libya, Afghanistan Role
Viola Gienger, Bloomberg – October 5, 2011
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta drew on the achievements of NATO’s operation in Libya to call for a greater commitment to the alliance even in times of budget cuts, softening a message his predecessor, Robert Gates, delivered with a rhetorical bang just four months ago.
Third of vets say Iraq, Afghan wars not ‘worth it’
AFP – October 5, 2011
A third of Americans who served in the military following the September 11 attacks do not believe the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were worth fighting, a poll found Wednesday.
