CND's Press Round-Up - 24th March 2021
Posted: 24th March 2021
Dear all,
Please find today’s press round up below. A continued thanks to all for your help and support.
Nuclear Weapons
Nuclear Armed Submarine Construction
Local press carries a report on the reaction in Barrow to the Defence White Paper, with the local Tory MP Simon Fell welcoming what is, in his words, the Government’s ‘black and white commitment’ to building the ‘next generation’ of Astute class nuclear-armed submarines in the town. HMS Audacious, the fourth of a planned seven Astute class submarines, set sail from the town in April 2020.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/fourth-astute-class-submarine-formally-named
North Korea Missile Test
North Korea conducted two test firings of missiles off its coast over the weekend, according to Al Jazeera. It is the first publicly known test since President Joe Biden assumed office. However, it is believed that the test involved systems not covered by UN Security Council testing bans, and the missile were cruise missiles, rather than ballistic missiles.
Anti-War
UK-China Relations
After the British ambassador to China was summoned to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, it is expected in Whitehall circles that the UK will face retaliatory sanctions from China. This follows on from the co-ordinated EU-UK-US-Canada sanctions on four Chinese officials alleged to be complicit in human rights abuses in Xinjiang province. China has already imposed sanctions on five MEPs. The Guardian carries a full report.
American Military Operations in Yemen
Two Yemeni men whose relatives were killed in a U.S. drone attack, Ahmed and Khalid bin Ali Jaber, have filed a suit through the German Federal Constitutional Court, with the aim of the court ruling that U.S. bases in Germany cannot legally be allowed to direct drone strikes in Yemen. This follows on from a 2019 court ruling that Germany had ‘partial responsibility’ for ensuring that drone strikes, directed from the Ramstein Air Base, complied with international law. A full report can be found on Al Jazeera.
Nuclear Power
Nuclear Power-UK
Councillors in Caithness have indicated their support for a bid for the Dounreay former nuclear site in the north of Scotland to be the host for the UK’s prototype nuclear fusion reactor, according to local press. The other Scottish site bidding for the fusion project is Chapelcross in Dumfries and Galloway. The call for bids closes at the end of this month, with a final decision on the successful site expected by the end of 2022.
Nuclear Power-Japan
The Japanese Nuclear Regulation Authority has banned the Tokyo Electric Power Company from restarting its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power facility, after finding ‘serious security flaws’. After testing in March last year, the NRA awarded the plant the lowest level security rating, which was the first time the regulator had ever done so to a nuclear facility. The seven-reactor Kashiwazaki-Kariwa complex had been one of the world’s largest nuclear plants. The full story can be found here.
Climate Change
Climate Finance
Since the Paris climate agreement was signed in 2015, the sixty largest banks in the world have provided $3.8 trillion dollars in financing for fossil fuel companies, according to a Guardian piece on a new report by a coalition of NGOs. The UK bank Barclays provided the most fossil fuel financing of all European banks. Despite overall financing declining by 9% last year, funding for the one hundred largest fossil fuel companies grew by 10%. A report from the International Energy Agency last week came to the conclusion that investments in renewable energy could boast a 367% greater return than investments in fossil fuels in the past decade.
With best wishes,
Michael Muir
Press and Communications Officer
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament