International Nuclear Watch & Discussion

chaanakya · Post by **chaanakya** » 14 Apr 2015 13:32

Radiation measured at deadly 9.7 sieverts in Fukushima reactor

Apr 13, 2015
WTH they have still not started those reactors.

Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Monday that radiation in the primary containment vessel of the No. 1 reactor of the Fukushima No. 1 power station gets as high as 9.7 sieverts per hour — enough to kill a human within an hour.

The radiation levels at six locations in the western section of the first floor of the PCV ranged from 7.0 to 9.7 sieverts per hour, the beleaguered utility said in disclosing data collected by a remote-controlled robot on Friday.

By contrast, the temperatures at the six locations monitored were cool, ranging from 17.8 to 20.2 degrees.

Tepco sent the robot into the primary containment vessel on Friday, expecting it to stay alive for 10 hours. But the robot failed within three hours after completing about two-thirds of its planned route. Tepco has given up on recovering the robot.

The survey involved eight Tepco employees and 36 other workers who were hired by contractors. The maximum radiation dose logged was 1.73 millisieverts.

Tepco official Teruaki Kobayashi said the survey found no major obstacles around an opening leading to the underground part of the vessel, which is good news for future surveys needed to extricate the molten nuclear fuel.

The No. 1 reactor is one of the three damaged by core meltdowns during the Fukushima nuclear crisis in March 2011.

chaanakya · Post by **chaanakya** » 14 Apr 2015 13:45

Looks like civil society in Japan is still unsupportive of PUNE.

Fukushima people to go to N.Y. to convey lessons of nuclear crisis

FUKUSHIMA, Japan, April 10, Kyodo

A major Japanese antinuclear group said Friday it will send 12 people from Fukushima Prefecture to New York to convey the lessons learned from the 2011 nuclear crisis on the occasion of a U.N. Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty review conference starting late this month.

The participants to be dispatched by the Japan Council against Atomic and Hydrogen Bombs (Gensuikyo) said they want to protest against not only nuclear weapons but the so-called peaceful use of nuclear energy by states as recognized by the treaty.

Isao Baba, 71, who cannot return to his home in the town of Namie due to high radiation levels, told a press conference in the prefectural government office, "I am among those who have experienced that nuclear power and human beings cannot coexist."
(Well Amano can always go there and resettle)
"I want to say that we don't need nuclear weapons, nor nuclear power," he said ahead of the NPT review conference from April 27 through May 22.

Fumio Kudo, a 37-year-old from the city of Iwaki, said that in New York he wants to show people from various countries photos he took in evacuated areas.

While in New York, the 12 plan to submit to the United Nations a petition calling for a nuclear weapons ban, with around 50,000 signatures collected in Fukushima Prefecture. They will also interact with members of nongovernmental organizations from other countries.

In Tokyo the same day, the Foreign Ministry gave eight survivors of the 1945 U.S. atomic bombings the title of "Special Communicators for a World without Nuclear Weapons," before they depart Sunday for NGO Peace Boat's world cruise to relate their experiences of the nuclear attacks.

Scenes of the voyage will be shown during events to be held in New York outside the NPT review conference, according to Peace Boat.

Civic group members from various countries are expected to gather in New York on the occasion to call for a nuclear-free world

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 15 Apr 2015 09:17

The world's most powerful laser system will launch in Russia in about 5 years

Nizhny Novgorod, April 14 - RIA Novosti. World's most powerful laser installation of a new generation of UV-2M, now being built on the territory of Sarov Technopark, scheduled to run through nearly five years, told the director of the director of the Russian Federal Nuclear Center - All-Russian Research Institute of Experimental Physics (VNIIEF, Sarov) Valentin Kostjukov.

Installing UV-2M is designed for fundamental research in high energy density physics. It is located in Technopark "Sarov" and will cover an area comparable to that of two football fields, and the height is about 10-storey building. The planned installation of energy output will be 4.6 million joules (for comparison, operates in a similar installation in the United States and France provide the energy output of not more than 2 million joules).

"The planned start-up - end of 2019 - beginning of 2020," - said Kostjukov. He added that a limited number of countries can create at such a setup. "This is a global brand of high-power," - said Kostjukov.

Speaking Tuesday at a forum "High technologies for sustainable development - NDExpo 2015," said Kostjukov almost complete setup project importonezavisimost UFL-2M.

"Ninety-five percent of the technologies and companies that are involved in its creation - Russia", - said the director of VNIIEF.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 15 Apr 2015 09:18

VNIIEF, is the one that designs nuclear weapons so likely this new laser facility is for soft testing of new TN weapons

Tuvaluan · Post by **Tuvaluan** » 23 Apr 2015 21:06

https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/n ... 77559.html

Decades-old ROK-US agreement finally revised

By Yi Whan-woo

South Korea and the United States reached agreement for a revision of their nuclear cooperation deal, Wednesday, allowing Seoul to expand its commercial use of nuclear energy.

Park Ro-byug, Seoul's Ambassador for Nuclear and Special Representative for the Republic of Korea (ROK)-U.S. Nuclear Cooperation, signed a provisional pact with U.S. Ambassador Mark Lippert in Seoul.

The 21-point deal will require final approval from both President Park Geun-hye and her U.S. counterpart Barack Obama to take effect.

The agreement states that South Korea has the right to peaceful use of nuclear energy as signatory to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said South Korea achieved its three goals in bilateral agreement — winning the right to deal with spent nuclear fuel, securing a stable supply of nuclear fuel and promoting the export of nuclear power plants.

The accord will allow Seoul to secure long-term advance consent from Washington for early stages in experimental reprocessing, called "pyroprocessing," including "post-irradiation examination" and "electro-reduction.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 06 May 2015 09:33

Russia's nuclear corporation chief: Russian NPPs twice as reliable as US, European ones

Bade · Post by **Bade** » 18 May 2015 23:26

From Physics Today US ahead of schedule on nuclear arms cuts

With nearly three years remaining to complete the reductions called for in the New START Treaty with Russia, the US has to remove only a few dozen nuclear warheads to reach the agreed cap of 1550, Secretary of State John Kerry announced. As of 1 March, the number of deployed US warheads totaled 1597. They are mounted on 785 intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and submarine-launched ballistic missiles and are carried aboard strategic bombers, according to a report released at the opening of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference at the United Nations on 27 April. The conference, held every five years, is due to conclude on 22 May.

The total US stockpile of nuclear weapons, including inactive ones, was 4717 as of September 2014, Kerry said. That is an 85% reduction from the Cold War peak. It’s also the smallest number since 1956.

Kerry announced that President Obama will seek to accelerate the pace of dismantlement of retired warheads by 20%. During fiscal year 2014, 299 warheads were dismantled, the report said, and about 2500 retired warheads were awaiting dismantlement. Since 1994 the US has dismantled more than 10 000 weapons. The US plans call for the dismantlement of all nuclear weapons retired prior to 2009 by no later than the end of FY 2022.

“We are mindful that in return for a commitment to refrain from pursuing nuclear weapons, nations around the world expect the existing nuclear powers to in their turn steadily disarm and fulfill their part of the bargain,” said Kerry. “The United States is unequivocally committed to doing just that.”

The report said that as of June 2014, all ICBMs had been converted from carrying multiple, independently targeted warheads to carrying a single bomb. By 2018, the deadline for the reductions under New START, the US will have removed 50 ICBMs from their silos, rendered 4 of the 24 launch tubes aboard each of the 14 ballistic missile submarines unusable, and converted 30 B-52 bombers to conventional weapons only..

The New START reductions will leave no more than 400 deployed ICBMs, 240 submarine-launched missiles, and 60 deployed nuclear-capable bombers, the report said.

Since 2005, 146 tons of the 374 tons of highly enriched uranium (HEU) that the US declared surplus to its weapons needs has been downblended to low-enriched uranium (LEU), the report said. Some 230 metric tons of LEU from that program has been placed in a reserve available to nations that might be unable to obtain fuel commercially for their power reactors. When information was last released in 2004, the US HEU stockpile totaled 687 tons. The US last produced HEU in 1964.

The US will contribute $50 million to the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA’s) Peaceful Uses Initiative, which promotes nuclear power, Kerry said. “These resources will further expand global access to the peaceful atom, putting it to use for sustainable economic development.” Since the last NPT review conference in 2010, the US has contributed $200 million to the IAEA initiative.

Although not a member of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, the US is the largest contributor to its administrative organization, funding 22% of its budget. Since 1994 that contribution has totaled $377 million.

Vipul · Post by **Vipul** » 19 May 2015 03:10

So China is waiting in the sidelines watching the Americans spend money on scrapping the number of nuclear warheads and delivery systems so that in 5-10 years it is reduced to a level of parity with China who by then would have a big enough budget to indulge US in another arms race (Which US may not then be in a position to afford). For China it is a Win-Win situation by default.

Vipul · Post by **Vipul** » 19 May 2015 03:21

Austin wrote:Russia's nuclear corporation chief: Russian NPPs twice as reliable as US, European ones

Yes sure, the guy must be smoking some very potent stuff.

Theo_Fidel · Post by **Theo_Fidel** » 26 Jun 2015 01:22

Finnish TVO scraps nuke reactor plans over EPR delays

http://www.globalpost.com/article/65474 ... epr-delays

Finnish electricity company TVO said Wednesday it had scrapped plans to build a new nuclear reactor in Finland because of delays and problems with an EPR reactor being built by Areva and Siemens.

chaanakya · Post by **chaanakya** » 15 Sep 2015 22:55

Fukushima dumps first batch of once-radioactive water in sea

AFP, Tokyo| Updated: Sep 15, 2015 19:38 IST

Japan's Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) displays the new filtering facility to purify groundwater at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture. (AFP Photo)

Japan's crippled Fukushima nuclear plant on Monday began releasing previously contaminated water into the sea, but the man tasked with preventing another meltdown warned other highly radioactive fluid still stored on site could pose a major threat.

Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), which operates the plant in eastern Japan, discharged 850 tons of formerly contaminated water it had extracted from the ground near the plant into the sea, saying a filtration process had now made it safe.

Monday was the first time the plant, whose reactors went into meltdown after being hit by a huge tsunami in 2011, has released once radioactive water into nature after a years-long battle with fishermen, who feared it could destroy their livelihood.

But Dale Klein, the chairman of a committee created to ensure the nuclear meltdown is never repeated, said other highly radioactive water used to cool the reactors four years ago and which is still kept in tanks in the plant could be dangerous.

"The risk that you run is that you have all these tanks full of water," Klein told AFP in an interview.

"The longer you store the water, the more likely you are going to have (an) uncontrolled release," he said, adding that he would like to see the supplies released from storage in the next three years.

TEPCO has faced criticism for its handling of the meltdown, which saw thousands of people evacuated as radiation poisoned the air, land and water and has already cost some $57 billion in compensation for residents.

Four years later it is still extracting some 300 tons of contaminated water from the ground every day, which had been stored in tanks before TEPCO started releasing it into the sea after purification on Monday.

'Long-term solution'

The move is a milestone for the company, which said a filtration system removing highly radioactive substances like strontium and caesium meant the groundwater was now safe to release into the natural environment.

Fishermen had argued that the discharge even of the groundwater would heighten contamination concerns and hurt their already battered reputation.

They had fought to stop the water being released into the sea, even after it is filtered, but eventually bowed to pressure from TEPCO, which is struggling to find space to store the tainted supplies.

But it has yet to find a solution to deal with another highly radioactive 680,000 tons of water that was used to cool the reactors during the meltdown, which is still stored on site.

Fishermen are opposed to the fluid being released into the sea, even after it is filtered.

"I would much rather see Japan move to a long-term solution of the controlled release, rather than have an unexpected release" that could be caused by pipebreaks or other failures, said Klein.

Torrential flooding this month in an area not far south of the plant added to contamination concerns, flushing away at least 293 plastic bags of plants and soil that had been collected in the clean up.

The tsunami, following a 9.0 magnitude quake, triggered the world's worst nuclear disaster in a generation and prompted Tokyo to shut down the 50 reactors nationwide used to generate electricity.

This month saw the evacuation order lifted for Naraha, the first of seven municipalities fully emptied after the explosion whose residents can return permanently, but the full clean up is expected take decades

Vipul · Post by **Vipul** » 08 Oct 2015 02:20

US in talks with Pakistan over capping its nuke range.

The Obama administration is exploring a possible civilian nuclear deal with Pakistan ahead of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's visit to Washington later this month, a Washington Post columnist has reported, citing a sole source "familiar with the talks" who said Islamabad has been asked to consider "brackets" relating to the deal.Brackets, in diplomatic parlance, are numerous alternative formulations that are negotiated towards an eventual agreement. According to the report, the deal centers around a civilian nuclear agreement similar to the one the United States arrived at with India, in exchange for a Pakistani commitment that would "restrict its nuclear program to weapons and delivery systems that are appropriate to its actual defense needs against India's nuclear threat."

Pakistan might, for example, agree not to deploy missiles capable of reaching beyond a certain range, the report said, citing the source, who indicated that the US might support an eventual waiver for Pakistan by the 48-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), the same way it has done for India.

The Obama administration said it was in "regular contact" with the Government of Pakistan on "a range of issues" as it prepared for the visit on October 22 of Prime Minister Sharif, but declined comment on the specifics of the discussions.

"The United States urges all nuclear-capable states, including Pakistan, to exercise restraint regarding nuclear weapons and missile capabilities. We encourage efforts to strengthen safety and security measures and continue to hold regular discussions with Pakistan on a range of global issues, including nuclear security, counterterrorism, and international norms," an administration spokesperson said in a tacit acknowledgement that some sort of dialogue is taking place on the nuclear issue.

Successive US administrations both under Presidents Bush and President Obama, have knocked down the idea of a deal for Pakistan like the one Washington arrived at with India, saying the background and circumstances surrounding the US-India civilian nuclear agreement was entirely different, and pointing to Pakistan's record of nuclear proliferation.

However, President Obama's recent track record vis-a-vis Iran and Cuba, both regarded for a long time as outlaw nations, suggests there may be some substance to a nuclear outreach towards Pakistan. There is also less pathology about Pakistan in Washington's official circles, where many veterans have a romanticized recall of Islamabad's role in the Cold War when it offered its services to Washington, for a price. The strategy helped Pakistan circumvent nuclear non-proliferation roadblocks that the US all too readily winked at.

In recent months, Pakistan has tried to project itself as a responsible nuclear power, although some of its politicians and generals reflexively brandish the country's nuclear weapons to assure themselves and their constituents about security against India. "We are a nuclear-armed country and we know how to defend ourselves," Pakistan's National Security Advisor Sartaj Aziz boasted recently in a suo motu assertion although no one had talked of a nuclear war.

While a few regional experts have floated the idea of a nuclear deal for Pakistan in the past, most analysts are aghast at the prospect. It will be "sheer madness wrapped in folly," said Sumit Ganguly, a South Asia scholar at Indiana University, among several experts who have critiqued Washington frequent free passes to a country that has a reckless history of nuclear proliferation and home-grown terrorism.

The WaPo report however conceded that inasmuch as Pakistan prizes its nuclear program, "negotiations would be slow and difficult, and it's not clear that Islamabad would be willing to accept the limitations that would be required." But, it said, the issue is being discussed quietly in the run-up to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's visit to Washington on October 22.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 20 Oct 2015 21:25

Pakistan has built low yield nuclear weapons to counter Indian aggression

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 01 Nov 2015 22:34

Explosion rocks nuclear power plant in Belgium

An explosion occurred overnight at a nuclear power plant in Doel, northern Belgium, local media reported, adding that the blast caused a fire. The exact damage from the incident remains unknown.
The blast happened around 11pm local time on Saturday. The fire started in Reactor 1 of the plant, but was soon extinguished by personnel.

The explosion didn’t cause any threat to nature, Els De Clercq, spokeswoman from Belgian energy corporation Electrabel that runs the plant, told Het Laatste Nieuws. There was no fuel present at the time of the incident as the reactor had been shut due to its expired operational license.

READ MORE: Mysterious drone over restarted Belgium nuclear plant prompts investigation

terror or tech/sops screw up?

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 06 Jan 2016 08:34

North Korea says it has conducted a successful hydrogen bomb test

My quake-alert does say 5.1 quake...near surface too.
41degrees18'18"N, 129degrees02'20" East Sungjibaegam, NK

Looking at quake amplitude: - The claim that it is a hydrogen bomb is almost certainly exaggerated. At best it may be a boosted device.. of the order of 10KT..

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 06 Jan 2016 08:54

http://www.japantoday.com/category/nati ... ear-deal-2

Japan to send plutonium cache to U.S. under nuclear deal

Japan will send a huge cache of plutonium—enough to produce 50 nuclear bombs—to the United States as part of a deal to return the material that was used for research, reports and officials said Tuesday.The plutonium stockpile, provided by the U.S., Britain and France decades ago, has caused some disquiet given that Japan has said it has the ability to produce a nuclear weapon even if it chooses not to.Some 331 kilograms of the highly fissionable material will be sent by ship to a nuclear facility in South Carolina by the end of March, Kyodo News reported Monday in a dispatch from Washington that cited unnamed Japanese government sources.The shipment, which comes ahead of a nuclear security summit in Washington in March, is meant to underscore both countries’ commitment to nuclear non-proliferation and is part of a deal they made in 2014.In 2006, then foreign minister Taro Aso sparked panic in neighboring countries by saying Japan, a scientific superpower with numerous Nobel prizes to its credit, had the know-how to produce nuclear arms but opts not to.Japan is the only country to ever have been attacked with nuclear weapons, and under a 1967 policy it refuses to produce, possess or allow nuclear weapons on its soil.But in 2010 Tokyo admitted to previous secret agreements with the United States to allow American warships to carry nuclear weapons across Japanese territory and to take the arms to US bases on Okinawa island in an emergency..

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 06 Jan 2016 09:34

http://thediplomat.com/2015/12/does-nor ... ign=buffer

Does North Korea Really Have an H-Bomb? closer look at Kim Jong-un’s recent comments. / Jeffrey LewisDecember 16, 2015

Most recently, the DPRK ambassador in London claimed, in prepared remarks, that North Korea had weapons ten times as powerful as the ones that had been tested. Given that such speeches are often prepared by local embassy staff, amalgamating previously published statements, it seemed unwise to draw too strong an inference at the time. But the idea of a North Korean H-bomb has been floating around for a bit.Technically, a few words of caution are in order. Building a staged thermonuclear weapon — one in which the radiation from a fission primary compresses a secondary stage of thermonuclear fuel — would seem to be a bit of a stretch for the North Koreans. That is the sort of device one normally thinks about when someone says “H-bomb.” Thermonuclear weapons are tricky; making one work requires a bit of test experience. While the North Koreans finally conducted an unambiguously successful nuclear test in 2013, the 2006 and 2009 tests were less so.A more technically plausible scenario is that North Korea might be experimenting with fusion fuels, such as deuterium or lithium, to boost the yield of a fission explosion. Pretty much every country that builds nuclear weapons looks at using fusion fuel to boost the yield of a device. China, for example, burned lithium-6 in its third test, conducted less than two years after its first nuclear test in October 1964. China was committed to developing a staged thermonuclear device, something it accomplished with its fifth and sixth nuclear tests in 1966 and 1967. Pakistan tried to purchase a tritium separation line, something AQ Khan claims it did successfully. Even South Africa had a program to look at boosting its gun-type devices for missile delivery, going so far as to import tritium from Israel.
In 2010, I noted that we had little evidence that the DPRK is interested in boosted nuclear weapons or staged thermonuclear devices beyond the May announcement that it had conducted fusion related experiments. Since then, the DPRK propaganda apparatus has made only a few mentions of fusion, all apparently references to the 2010 announcement. Typical, for example, are statements that North Korea was a “socialist powerhouse” because “eye-catching successes were registered in space, nuclear fusion, CNC and other scientific and technological fields and a lot of edifices built throughout the country.”There has not been much evidence to document the DPRK’s interest in boosted weapons since then, although David Albright points out that North Korea has installed or renovated irradiation channels in the core of the gas-graphite reactor at Yongbyon, which might indicate tritium production. (Carey Sublette has noted that similar channels were visible in the images of the now-destroyed Al Kibar reactor that North Korea assisted Syria in constructing.)
While it is best to treat DPRK propaganda with some skepticism, it is also important to note that the North has now had a nuclear weapons program for more than 20 years. This program has yielded three nuclear tests. North Korean nuclear scientists have access to their counterparts in Pakistan, possibly Iran and maybe a few other places. We should not expect that they will test the same fission device over and over again.I teach a class on the evolution of China’s nuclear weapons program at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, which compares declassified U.S. intelligence estimates to historical and other materials now available. One of the major themes of the early part of China’s nuclear program is how committed China was to matching the other nuclear powers in the possession of intercontinental-range ballistic missiles armed with multi-megaton thermonuclear weapons. A lot of Americans had trouble accepting this idea. We thought of China as being too backward to have such aspirations. That was, I argue, precisely why China wanted such weapons: because China’s communist leaders had a different vision of China’s place in the world and the development of thermonuclear weapons was a way of achieving that vision.I think something similar is happening with North Korea. We think of the country as impoverished, both in terms of economy and leadership. Well, that’s not how the government in North Korea sees itself — and anyone who does, keeps such thoughts to himself. Pyongyang’s propaganda apparatus argues — and this is what Kim was saying — that North Korea is a technological powerhouse. The North Korean propaganda line argues that this power is demonstrated by a series of achievements culminating in space launches, nuclear weapons and, yes, even thermonuclear weapons.So, while a staged thermonuclear weapon is likely more than North Korea can, at the moment, achieve technically, it is a mistake to rule out the aspiration by Pyongyang. An H-bomb might not conveniently fit our perception of North Korea, but perhaps that is Kim’s point.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 06 Jan 2016 09:41

This guy is talking nonsense. Every power that fission tested was able to create a fusion device within five years.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 06 Jan 2016 18:00

DPRK Proves Successful in H-bomb Test

Pyongyang, January 6 (KCNA) -- The DPRK government issued the following statement Wednesday:

There took place a world startling event to be specially recorded in the national history spanning 5,000 years in the exciting period when all service personnel and people of the DPRK are making a giant stride, performing eye-catching miracles and exploits day by day after turning out as one in the all-out charge to bring earlier the final victory of the revolutionary cause of Juche, true to the militant appeal of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK).

The first H-bomb test was successfully conducted in the DPRK at 10:00 on Wednesday, Juche 105 (2016), pursuant to the strategic determination of the WPK.

Through the test conducted with indigenous wisdom, technology and efforts the DPRK fully proved that the technological specifications of the newly developed H-bomb for the purpose of test were accurate and scientifically verified the power of smaller H-bomb.

It was confirmed that the H-bomb test conducted in a safe and perfect manner had no adverse impact on the ecological environment.

The test means a higher stage of the DPRK's development of nuclear force.

By succeeding in the H-bomb test in the most perfect manner to be specially recorded in history the DPRK proudly joined the advanced ranks of nuclear weapons states possessed of even H-bomb and the Korean people came to demonstrate the spirit of the dignified nation equipped with the most powerful nuclear deterrent.

This test is a measure for self-defence the DPRK has taken to firmly protect the sovereignty of the country and the vital right of the nation from the ever-growing nuclear threat and blackmail by the U.S.-led hostile forces and to reliably safeguard the peace on the Korean Peninsula and regional security.

Since the appearance of the word hostility in the world there has been no precedent of such deep-rooted, harsh and persistent policy as the hostile policy the U.S. has pursued towards the DPRK.

The U.S. is a gang of cruel robbers which has worked hard to bring even a nuclear disaster to the DPRK, not content with having imposed the thrice-cursed and unheard-of political isolation, economic blockade and military pressure on it for the mere reason that it has differing ideology and social system and refuses to yield to the former's ambition for aggression.

The Korean Peninsula and its vicinity are turning into the world's biggest hotspot where a nuclear war may break out since they have been constantly stormed with all nuclear strike means of the U.S. imperialist aggressor troops, including nuclear carrier strike group and nuclear strategic flying corps.

While kicking up all forms of economic sanctions and conspiratorial "human rights" racket against the DPRK with mobilization of the hostile forces, the U.S. has made desperate efforts to block its building of a thriving nation and improvement of the people's living standard and "bring down its social system".

The DPRK's access to H-bomb of justice, standing against the U.S., the chieftain of aggression watching for a chance for attack on it with huge nukes of various types, is the legitimate right of a sovereign state for self-defense and a very just step no one can slander.

Genuine peace and security cannot be achieved through humiliating solicitation or compromise at the negotiating table.

The present-day grim reality clearly proves once again the immutable truth that one's destiny should be defended by one's own efforts.

Nothing is more foolish than dropping a hunting gun before herds of ferocious wolves.

The spectacular success made by the DPRK in the H-bomb test this time is a great deed of history, a historic event of the national significance as it surely guarantees the eternal future of the nation.

The DPRK is a genuine peace-loving state which has made all efforts to protect peace on the Korean Peninsula and security in the region from the U.S. vicious nuclear war scenario.

The DPRK, a responsible nuclear weapons state, will neither be the first to use nuclear weapons nor transfer relevant means and technology under any circumstances as already declared as long as the hostile forces for aggression do not encroach upon its sovereignty.

There can neither be suspended nuclear development nor nuclear dismantlement on the part of the DPRK unless the U.S. has rolled back its vicious hostile policy toward the former.

The army and people of the DPRK will steadily escalate its nuclear deterrence of justice both in quality and quantity to reliably guarantee the future of the revolutionary cause of Juche for all ages.

Juche Korea will be prosperous forever as it holds fast to the great WPK's line of simultaneously pushing forward the two fronts.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 06 Jan 2016 18:17

CTBTO's Zerbo on the DPRK's test

Vienna, 6 January 2016

“Our monitoring stations picked up an unusual seismic event in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) today at 01:30:00 (UTC). The location is very similar to the event our system registered on 12 February 2013. Our initial location estimate shows that the event took place in the area of the DPRK’s nuclear test site. The DPRK also claimed today that it has conducted yet another nuclear test, the fourth since 2006.

Our experts are now analysing the event to establish more about its nature.

“If confirmed as a nuclear test, this act constitutes a breach of the universally accepted norm against nuclear testing; a norm that has been respected by 183 countries since 1996. It is also a grave threat to international peace and security. I urge the DPRK to refrain from further nuclear testing and to join the 183 States Signatories who have signed the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). As we commemorate the 20th anniversary of the opening of the Treaty for signature, it is high time that the global prohibition on nuclear testing is enshrined into a legally binding instrument. I sincerely hope that this will serve as the final wake-up call to the international community to outlaw all nuclear testing by bringing the CTBT into force,” said Lassina Zerbo, Executive Secretary of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO).

Broadcast quality footage will be posted in the CTBTO Newsroom as it becomes available.

Background:

The CTBT bans all nuclear explosions. The Treaty will enter into force once signed and ratified by the remaining eight nuclear technology holder countries: China, Egypt, the DPRK, India, Iran, Israel, Pakistan and the United States.

A verification regime is being built to monitor compliance with the Treaty. Nearly 90 percent of the 337 facilities of the International Monitoring System (IMS) are already in place; see interactive map. The system swiftly, reliably and precisely detected all DPRK’s declared nuclear tests. After the previous DPRK announced nuclear test on 12 February 2013, the CTBTO was the only organization to detect radioactivity attributable to the event.

CTBTO Member States are provided with data collected by the monitoring stations, as well as data analyses prepared by the International Data Centre in Vienna, Austria. Once the Treaty has entered into force, an on-site inspection can be invoked in case of a suspicious event.

arun · Post by **arun** » 06 Jan 2016 20:41

The DPRK claimed H-Bomb Test, a case of moving closer to Spinster’s vision from the early days of BRF of “A bomb in the back yard and an ICBM in the front yard of every country will lead to world peace and understanding” ?

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 06 Jan 2016 23:46

"H Bomb of Justice" no less

Picklu · Post by **Picklu** » 07 Jan 2016 00:01

Has the world changed enough for us to get out of our self-imposed moratorium on testing?

Pakis will have the test data for sure.

Was Pathankot linked somehow? Another signal?

ramdas · Post by **ramdas** » 07 Jan 2016 00:13

I think it is time for us to get out of the moratorium. Hope the PM ignores R Chidambaram in this: the latter has a vested interest in keeping the moratorium- which will lead to TSP nuclear superiority over us. Open ended testing till we get thermonuclear weapons of sufficient yield is a must. Sanctions be dammed.

nirav · Post by **nirav** » 07 Jan 2016 00:40

May 11 2018 sounds like a good date for us to test hydrogen fused prasadam.

International dhamachakdi aside, it will yield massive upper circuits for political prospects of current govt for re election in 2019.

Pokhran III

The resultant Packee tests to preserve their echandee will also have strategic economic implications by setting their economy back by atleast a decade.

Win win for scheming yindoos.

ramdas · Post by **ramdas** » 07 Jan 2016 00:47

No point postponing. Enemies will try to pull down the Modi govt. before that through internal dissent/manufacturing chaos etc. Also gives too much time for TSP to consolidate nuclear superiority. The situation is desperate. India needs proven thermonuclear weapons ASAP at all cost. The sooner we embark on open ended thermonuclear testing, the better. We must make allowance for the fact that several tests may be needed from our side.

Also, nuclear tests will have no political effect. The opposition can always cite R Chidambaram etc to claim the tests were unnecessary. Any temporary euphoria will evaporate very fast.

All in all, looks like the early 1990's once again. Today's BJP is like the then INC. Today's opposition, unfortunately, is like the then CPI(M)- cat's paws for the TSP-PRC axis. What is missing is an entity like the 1990's BJP to put pressure towards the move for a thermonuclear test.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 08 Jan 2016 00:52

Behind North Korea's nuclear weapons programme: a geriatric trio

The godfathers of North Korea's nuclear weapons programme were an elderly trio: a nuclear physicist, a military general, and a broker with contacts in Pakistan.

"By the autumn of 1996, he said 'We've solved a big problem. We don't need plutonium this time. Due to an agreement with Pakistan, we will use uranium'".

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 08 Jan 2016 01:08

http://www.technologyreview.com/news/54 ... in-europe/
Meltdown-Proof Nuclear Reactors Get a Safety Check in Europe
Researchers say they could build a prototype of a molten-salt reactor, a safer, cleaner option for nuclear power, in 10 years.

Molten-salt reactors also offer inherent safety advantages: because the fuel is liquid, it expands when heated, thus slowing the rate of nuclear reactions and making the reactor self-governing. And they’re built like bathtubs, with a drain in the bottom that’s blocked by a “freeze plug.” If anything goes wrong, the freeze plug melts and the reactor core drains into a shielded underground container. They can operate as producers of thermal power or as “burner” reactors that consume nuclear waste from conventional reactors.Essentially, molten-salt reactors could solve the two problems that have bedeviled the nuclear power industry: safety and waste.While the advantages of molten-salt reactors have been understood for some time, they remain at the R&D stage because, in the post-Fukushima era of low-price natural gas, it’s hard to convince investors to fund any alternative nuclear technology. In the United States it can take a decade or more, and hundreds of millions of dollars, just to bring a new reactor design to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a license application. Samofar is focused on fast reactors, which are more efficient than conventional light-water reactors and can breed fissile elements from nuclear waste. The researchers will build experimental laboratory facilities—not, at least for the next few years, an actual working reactor—to test the geometry of the freeze plug, the coatings of vessel and pipe materials, the behavior of the liquid fuel during circulation and draining, and other key safety metrics.Getting that commitment remains an uphill struggle, but a report funded by the government of the United Kingdom and released recently by Energy Process Developments, a London-based research firm, reviews technologies from six potential developers of molten-salt reactor—Flibe Energy, Moltex Energy, ThorCon Power, Seaborg Technologies, Terrestrial Energy, and Transatomic Power—and finds encouraging signals for the next 10 years (see “Experiments Start on a Meltdown-Proof Nuclear Reactor”). After a decade of work, the companies “are ready now with proposals for the next step to implementation, namely engineering design to prepare the safety case and to proceed to design and build.”The most advanced program for liquid-fuel, thorium-based reactors is in China, where the Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics reportedly plans to build a prototype in the next few years. The Shanghai program is a collaboration with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where molten salt nuclear technology was born.

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 08 Jan 2016 02:22

Apr, 2015 :: Indian Molten Salt Breeder Reactor (IMSBR) Initiated

India has both the world’s largest thorium reserves and program to utilize it. The program is famously divided into three stages of which the ‘ready to be built’ Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR) is the beginning of the third stage.
In the newly published Thorium Energy Report (ThoriumEnergyReport.org) India reported that it has initiated studies on a conceptual design of the Indian Molten Salt Breeder Reactor (IMBSR):

'One of the most efficient systems to utilise uranium-233 is the self-sustaining Molten Salt Reactors (MSRs). This is being considered as an attractive option for large-scale deployment in the third stage and studies on conceptual design of the Indian Molten Salt Breeder Reactors (IMSBR) have been initiated', as stated by India.

The design will build on the accumulated experience from the AHWR as well as India’s previous research on Molten Salt Reactors. If India can learn to master the molten salt reactor technology as well, it could become the most efficient thorium reactor in India’s portfolio and make the country’s thorium resources last even longer.

China was the first country to announce a program aiming at thorium fuelled molten salt reactors in the beginning of 2011. India’s plan to use the MSR technology in the large-scale deployment of thorium is the second big announcement in the field. This is great news, and we hope to see it spur competition and collaboration from other nations to speed up technology development.

We are keen to follow up on India’s MSR progress and look forward to learn more about it at ThEC15 in Mumbai, India.

Read more about the Indian and Chinese programs, amongst others, in the newly published Thorium Energy Report - www.ThoriumEnergyReport.org

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 09 Jan 2016 22:53

Seismic waves from North Korea suggest a repeat of the 2013 nuclear test

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 09 Jan 2016 23:43

Revisiting South Africa's Bomb

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 12 Jan 2016 08:52

Major step wrt Iran nuclear deal
Iran Reports Removing Core From Reactor

Paul · Post by **Paul** » 12 Jan 2016 09:29

^Richard Verma does not have the bandwidth to connect directly with Modi or Doval. The Paki ambassador in Delhi has a better hold on South Block than Verma.

Says a lot about US foreign policy in subcontinent

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 12 Jan 2016 19:24

Iran days from disabling Arak reactor core, paving way for lifting of sanctions

https://www.rt.com/news/328616-iran-ara ... -disabled/

Conflicting reports come from Iran, as it moves to fulfil its obligation to disable the Arak heavy water nuclear reactor - the last major condition for the lifting of sanctions under a controversial international deal signed last year.
The fate of the Arak reactor, which could be used to produce plutonium, was one of the largest stumbling blocks for the agreement signed in July. Tehran agreed to retrofit the facility so that it could be used for advanced nuclear research and production of radioactive isotopes, while leading foreign powers pledged to provide technical help for the endeavor.

Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi told the Etemad newspaper that Arak would be disabled and the nuclear deal fully implemented in no more than seven days.

When the interview was published on Monday, semi-official news agency Fars said the core of the reactor has been removed and filled with cement to disable it. The agency cited an informed source.
...

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 12 Jan 2016 20:51

Paul wrote:^Richard Verma does not have the bandwidth to connect directly with Modi or Doval. The Paki ambassador in Delhi has a better hold on South Block than Verma.

Says a lot about US foreign policy in subcontinent

But Richard Verma is very proud of his Indian roots, and proudly said so on many occasions in interviews, and for many in south block he is considered "Indian" (which he or US considers a good thing). By ANY objective measure, the communication between US and India is better than any time is past.

Beside Modi and Obama have MET at least 6 times (i can count) since NaMo became PM. (Never in US or India's history such engagement took place before. Modi has visited (and got welcome fitting for a rock star by US public) US, White House, and officials. Obama has visited India twice (a first in US history), was official guest at 26th January etc..(again first in US/India history)

Speaking of band-width, Modi and Obama -- again for the first time, and rare for US - have direct 'hot line.

Simple fact is NaMo is elected PM of India, and Obama is elected President of USA, so this says a LOT more about US/India policy than any silly narrative.

It is not a coincidence that in EVERY recent poll, Americans have highly favorable opinion about India. --comparable to their best friends, and vice-ver-sa.

Paul · Post by **Paul** » 13 Jan 2016 19:51

My mistake. The F-16s and the Hellfire missiles in the pipeline must be meant for use against Iran then.

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 14 Jan 2016 11:14

^^^Recent News item about F-16 (at least for now) in the pipeline - already posted by someone ..

US Congress Moves Against Pakistani F-16 Deal

hnair · Post by **hnair** » 14 Jan 2016 11:56

Wish they would block those AMRAAMs and JDAMs instead of F16s. The rest of the F16s already with the PAF has become far, far dangerous to Indian lives because of those american sales.

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 14 Jan 2016 21:57

^^^ IMO instead of 'instead of F16' ALL such aid to Pakis should be cut. (I know AMRAAM was one item specifically listed in $5B cut in weapons detailed in the last budget deal but that is not enough). All friends of India (or world as whole) should strongly lobby for that. Even sane Pakistanis should understand that they do not need such items any more than a suicide vests.

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 17 Jan 2016 02:27

Sorry if already posted, but it's a significant news:
Iran Complies With Nuclear Deal; Sanctions Are Lifted