CND's Press Round-Up - 3rd August 2021
Posted: 3rd August 2021
Nuclear Weapons
The U.S. expresses concern about the future of the Iran nuclear deal talks, whilst the IOC turns down a mark of respect for Hiroshima Day and a ship is seized for violating sanctions on North Korea.
Iran Nuclear Deal
Rob Malley, the U.S’s Special Envoy for the Iran nuclear negotiations, has expressed serious concern over whether the JCPoA will be renewed at the Vienna talks, according to The Jerusalem Post. As the new Iranian presidential administration takes office this week, Malley said that ‘there’s a real risk here that they come back with unrealistic demands about what they can achieve in these talks’. Of particular concern to U.S. diplomats is the gains in scientific knowledge and technical experience Iran has made in its non-compliance period. On the Iranian side, there is the desire to make any deal more resilient against sudden changes in the U.S. political climate, as with Trump’s unilateral withdrawal from the deal.
Hiroshima Commemoration
The International Olympic Committee has said that it does not intend to hold a minute’s silence or other commemorative gesture to mark the 76th anniversary of Hiroshima at the Tokyo Olympic Games, Reuters reports. The Mayor of Hiroshima last month wrote to the IOC asking for a moment’s silence on Friday 6th August. The President of the IOC paid an official visit to Hiroshima ahead of the Games and placed a wreath in the Memorial Park in the city.
North Korea Sanctions
Al Jazeera reports that the U.S. has definitively taken possession of a Singapore-owned tanker used to make oil deliveries to North Korea in violation of the sanctions regime. The U.S. Justice Department is seeking to have the owner of the ship arrested. The M/T Courageous was seized by Cambodian authorities at the behest of the U.S. last year. It is claimed that the vessel was used to deliver millions of dollars’ worth of oil to North Korea in the second half of 2019.
Anti-war
Israel comes under criticism for its human rights abuses in Gaza.
Assault on Gaza
The liberal U.S. NGO Human Rights Watch has said that Israel’s aerial actions on Gaza in May ‘apparently amount to war crimes’, the Associated Press reports. HRW examined three Israeli air strikes which cumulatively killed 62 Palestinian civilians. According to the organisation, there were no military targets nearby. The HRW report also criticises Israel for refusing to investigated seriously its human rights violations.
Nuclear Power
Debate gathers over proposals to nationalise parts of the Hinkley project whilst a plan to store radioactive material meets local opposition.
Nuclear Power – UK
The right-wing Spectator magazine carries an article on the various shifts of the Lib Dems’ nuclear policies over the past decade or so. Sir Ed Davey, leader of the Lib Dems, has been vocally opposed to rumoured plans to nationalise the Chinses state-owned CGN’s 20% stake in the Hinkley Point C project. The Spectator claims that Hinkley Point C is now the most expensive nuclear power station in the world. The National Audit Office estimates that the project could end up costing the state £50 billion, rather than the £6 billion originally reckoned.
Radioactive Material Storage
Thousands of people have signed a petition protesting initial discussions about storing radioactive material near the Lincolnshire cost, the local ITV outlet reports. A government agency, Radioactive Waste Management, is in discussion with the local council about storing radioactive material underground at a former gas plant. Local people say the proposals are unwelcome and would damage the area’s tourist industry. RWM insist the plans are at a very early stage.
With best wishes,
Michael Muir
Press and Communications Officer
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
The U.S. expresses concern about the future of the Iran nuclear deal talks, whilst the IOC turns down a mark of respect for Hiroshima Day and a ship is seized for violating sanctions on North Korea.
Iran Nuclear Deal
Rob Malley, the U.S’s Special Envoy for the Iran nuclear negotiations, has expressed serious concern over whether the JCPoA will be renewed at the Vienna talks, according to The Jerusalem Post. As the new Iranian presidential administration takes office this week, Malley said that ‘there’s a real risk here that they come back with unrealistic demands about what they can achieve in these talks’. Of particular concern to U.S. diplomats is the gains in scientific knowledge and technical experience Iran has made in its non-compliance period. On the Iranian side, there is the desire to make any deal more resilient against sudden changes in the U.S. political climate, as with Trump’s unilateral withdrawal from the deal.
Hiroshima Commemoration
The International Olympic Committee has said that it does not intend to hold a minute’s silence or other commemorative gesture to mark the 76th anniversary of Hiroshima at the Tokyo Olympic Games, Reuters reports. The Mayor of Hiroshima last month wrote to the IOC asking for a moment’s silence on Friday 6th August. The President of the IOC paid an official visit to Hiroshima ahead of the Games and placed a wreath in the Memorial Park in the city.
North Korea Sanctions
Al Jazeera reports that the U.S. has definitively taken possession of a Singapore-owned tanker used to make oil deliveries to North Korea in violation of the sanctions regime. The U.S. Justice Department is seeking to have the owner of the ship arrested. The M/T Courageous was seized by Cambodian authorities at the behest of the U.S. last year. It is claimed that the vessel was used to deliver millions of dollars’ worth of oil to North Korea in the second half of 2019.
Anti-war
Israel comes under criticism for its human rights abuses in Gaza.
Assault on Gaza
The liberal U.S. NGO Human Rights Watch has said that Israel’s aerial actions on Gaza in May ‘apparently amount to war crimes’, the Associated Press reports. HRW examined three Israeli air strikes which cumulatively killed 62 Palestinian civilians. According to the organisation, there were no military targets nearby. The HRW report also criticises Israel for refusing to investigated seriously its human rights violations.
Nuclear Power
Debate gathers over proposals to nationalise parts of the Hinkley project whilst a plan to store radioactive material meets local opposition.
Nuclear Power – UK
The right-wing Spectator magazine carries an article on the various shifts of the Lib Dems’ nuclear policies over the past decade or so. Sir Ed Davey, leader of the Lib Dems, has been vocally opposed to rumoured plans to nationalise the Chinses state-owned CGN’s 20% stake in the Hinkley Point C project. The Spectator claims that Hinkley Point C is now the most expensive nuclear power station in the world. The National Audit Office estimates that the project could end up costing the state £50 billion, rather than the £6 billion originally reckoned.
Radioactive Material Storage
Thousands of people have signed a petition protesting initial discussions about storing radioactive material near the Lincolnshire cost, the local ITV outlet reports. A government agency, Radioactive Waste Management, is in discussion with the local council about storing radioactive material underground at a former gas plant. Local people say the proposals are unwelcome and would damage the area’s tourist industry. RWM insist the plans are at a very early stage.
With best wishes,
Michael Muir
Press and Communications Officer
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament