CND Press Digest: Wednesday 4th October 2023

Posted: 4th October 2023

War In Ukraine/NATO

  • Former UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace writes an op-ed for The Telegraph calling for Britain to make sure the West continues to back Ukraine as its offensive gathers momentum. Read a non-paywalled summary of Wallace’s comments in Newsweek.

  • The Telegraph: UK defence minister James Heappey has hailed the “functional defeat” of Russia in the Black Sea after a series of Ukrainian attacks on naval targets in the region in recent weeks. Speaking at a security event in Poland, Mr Heappey said the Russian navy had been “forced to disperse to ports from which it cannot have an effect on Ukraine” following the strikes.

  • Reuters: The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Russia had not abandoned a moratorium on nuclear testing, and dismissed a suggestion by the editor of a state television channel that Moscow should detonate a thermonuclear device in Siberia as a warning to the West.
  • Peace News with updates on the persecution of Ukrainian peace activist Yurii Sheliazhenko and Belarusian human rights activist Olga Karatch.  
  • In late September, a team of four volunteers from the Zaporizhzhya Protection Project travelled to visit communities near the power plant, in territory controlled by the Ukrainian government.

UK Nuclear Weapons

  • The US DoD has released a new $2.18 contract for maintenance work on the Trident II Strategic Weapon System Mark 6 Guidance Subsystem - of which the UK government will be obliged to pay $5.1 million. The contract notes that including all options, Whitehall could pay over $2.1 billion.

Lakenheath

  • Peace News report on CND’s recent Citizens’ Weapons Inspection at RAF Lakenheath.

AUKUS

  • A new US Congress research paper airs arguments for and against a nuclear-powered submarine sale to Australia, including claims that the AUKUS pact “could weaken deterrence of potential Chinese aggression.”

Nuclear Testing

  • Veterans Minister Johnny Mercer has told Britain’s nuclear test vets to sue the MoDafter being shown evidence that medical records are being unlawfully withheld.

UK Nuclear Energy

  • The prospective Green Party candidate for the new Waveney Valley constituency has pledged to challenge the Government over the new Sizewell C nuclear power station if he is elected to the seat.

Nuclear Energy

  • Reuters: A group of countries led by France has proposed a compromise on the EU’s electricity market design (EMD), pushing back on attempts by some countries to introduce stricter controls on future state aid for power plants, a document and sources said Tuesday. EU diplomats said the negotiations remained in limbo, with a group of countries led by Germany seeking stricter rules on the state support. This group is worried that France could win a competitive edge if it can offer state-backed fixed-price contracts to its nuclear fleet and spent the revenue this raises on supporting French industries.

  • That’s as Germany seeks a “grand bargain” with France to resolve their current stand-off over nuclear power and help unblock a sweeping reform of the EU’s electricity market.

China

  • There are fears that 55 Chinese sailors have died after their nuclear submarine was apparently caught in a trap intended to ambush US and UK sub-surface vessels, it has been claimed.

North Korea

  • North Korea criticised a new US strategy on countering weapons of mass destruction for describing the reclusive state as among those it considers a “persistent threat,” KCNA media reported on Wednesday.

CND

  • The October edition of Campaign magazine is now online with stories on trade unions and military spending, and the militarisation of space.

Best,

 

Pádraig McCarrick

 

Press and Communications Officer

Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament

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