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North Korea documentary shows limping Kim as he tackles ‘worst-ever hardships’

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SEOUL, Feb 1 (Reuters) – A North Korean documentary broadcast on Tuesday showed a limping leader Kim Jong Un as he tackles the impoverished country’s “worst-ever hardships” amid the coronavirus pandemic and sanctions over its weapons programmes.

Titled “The Great Year of Victory, 2021”, the 110-minute film chronicled a series of achievements throughout the year including on missile development, construction and efforts to beat the pandemic.

The narrator repeatedly lauded such projects as signs of “victory” led by a noticeably thinner Kim, in line with previous such documentaries used by state media to craft a semi-divine personality cult around him.

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The film did not elaborate on the hardships but reclusive North Korea, unlike rich, democratic South Korea, faces deepening food shortages amid the sanctions, drought and floods, according to U.N. agencies.

North Korea has not confirmed any COVID-19 cases, but has closed its borders. It has been steadily developing its weapons systems amid an impasse over talks aimed at dismantling its nuclear and ballistic missile arsenals in return for relief from U.N. and U.S. sanctions.

At one point in the film, Kim was seen struggling to walk down makeshift stairs during a visit to a rainy construction site.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspects the proposed building site for the Ryonpho Vegetable Greenhouse Farm in the Ryonpho area of Hamju County, North Korea, in this undated photo released January 28, 2022 by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). KCNA via REUTERS

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“This video showed his motherly side where he completely dedicated his own body to realise people’s dreams,” the narrator said.

The film did not directly refer to Kim’s weight loss, but he has appeared increasingly thinner in recent state media photos.

In June, state media said North Koreans were “heartbroken” to see an “emaciated” Kim, in a rare such dispatch, after he reappeared following absence from the public eye of almost a month.

International media, intelligence agencies and experts closely watch Kim’s health due to his tight grip on power and the uncertainty over succession plans.

The documentary also showed Kim watching the sunrise alone while riding a white horse on a beach. On another ride, he was seen with military officials including Pak Jong Chon, chief of the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army, followed by a clip of tanks staging live-fire drills.

The film included rare images of a new 80-storey skyscraper and a large apartment district, as well as some clips and images of a defence expo in October and previous missile tests.

In December, Kim said the ruling party had some success in implementing a five-year economic plan he unveiled early last year, but warned of a “very giant struggle” this year, citing the pandemic and economic difficulties.

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Additional reporting by An Sunghyuk; Editing by Nick Macfie

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North Korea appears to have fired cruise missiles

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SEOUL, Jan 25 (Reuters) – North Korea fired what appeared to be two cruise missiles into the sea off its east coast on Tuesday, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said, days after a flurry of ballistic missile tests.

South Korea’s military is assessing the launches to determine the nature of the projectiles, it said.

Such a launch would be its fifth missile test of the year, as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has vowed to bolster the military with cutting-edge technology at a time when talks with South Korea and the United States have stalled. read more

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The isolated nation’s biggest cluster of missile launches since at least 2019 has prompted an expression of concern from the U.N. secretary general, and the Biden administration has applied new sanctions. read more

Lee Sang-min, a military expert at the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses say the missile volleys this month look to be aimed at building geopolitical tensions and perhaps push the Biden administration to come up with a new strategy toward North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

“Cruise missiles are slower than ballistic missiles and so are regarded as less of a threat, but they hit targets with high precision, something North Korea would continue to develop,” said Lee said.

Cruise missile launches by the North are not banned under United Nations sanctions imposed on Pyongyang, which has defied international condemnation and conducted four rounds of ballistic missile tests, the most recent on Jan. 17. read more

China and Russia have pushed the U.N. Security Council to remove a ban on Pyongyang’s exports of statues, seafood and textiles, and raise a refined petroleum imports cap.

North Korea has said it is open to talks, but only if the United States and others drop “hostile policies” such as sanctions and military drills.

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Reporting by Jack Kim; Editing by Kim Coghill and Gerry Doyle

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Biden, Kishida agree to boost security, economic cooperation amid rising concerns

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WASHINGTON/TOKYO, Jan 21 (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida agreed in a virtual meeting on Friday to boost cooperation on pressing economic and security issues, including China, North Korea’s missiles and Russia’s threat to Ukraine.

The online meeting, their first substantial talks since Kishida became Japan’s prime minister in October, followed “two-plus-two” discussions this month at which defense and foreign ministers from the longtime allies voiced strong concern about China’s growing might and vowed to respond if necessary to destabilizing activity in the Indo-Pacific. read more

Kishida said he and Biden had agreed to cooperate to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific, to work closely on China and the North Korean missile issue and also to cooperate on Ukraine.

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He also said Japan would host a meeting of the Quad grouping of the United States, Japan, Australia and India in the first half of this year with Biden visiting.

Biden accepted the invitation and indicated his intention to visit in late spring, a senior U.S. administration official said, adding that one of the aims of the Quad meeting would be to review progress of a pledge to supply a billion COVID-19 vaccine doses to Southeast Asia by the end of 2022.

Kishida said he and Biden also agreed to set up an economic version of a “two-plus-two” ministerial to promote economic cooperation. The U.S. official said this would focus on supply chains, technology investments, standards setting and export controls.

“We agreed to work together to advance cooperation among like-minded countries to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Kishida told reporters. “We agreed to closely cooperate on China-related issues, including the East and South China Seas, Hong Kong, and the Xinjiang Uyghur (Autonomous Region), as well as North Korea’s nuclear and missile issues.”

Kishida said he and Biden would work closely to prevent a Russian invasion of Ukraine and “keep close contact with other allies and partners and continue communicating on the point that any attack will be met with strong action.”In a tweet, Biden said it was “an honor to meet with Prime Minister Kishida to further strengthen the U.S.-Japan Alliance — the cornerstone of peace and security in the Indo-Pacific and around the world.”

A White House statement said Biden had welcomed Kishida’s decision to increase defense spending and “underscored the importance of sustaining these vital investments over time.”

It said the two stressed the importance of strengthening cybersecurity and resolved “to push back” against China’s attempts to change the status quo in the East and South China Seas.

The U.S. official told reporters U.S.-Japan solidarity was on “full display” in the virtual session of about 90 minutes.

The two had a “very in-depth discussion” on China, sharing concerns about its intimidation of neighbors and “predatory” steps in trade and other realms, he said, adding that Kishida was particularly concerned about China’s nuclear buildup.

The White House said the leaders condemned North Korea’s recent ballistic missile launches, and the U.S. official said Biden had made clear Washington would work closely with Japan and South Korea to discourage “possible provocations that might follow on.”

North Korea fired tactical guided missiles this week in its latest of a series of launches and warned on Thursday it might rethink a moratorium on nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests.

The U.S. official said Biden and Kishida had had a “robust” discussion on the need for the United States to play an active role in trade and commercial architecture in Asia.

The Biden administration has been criticized for lacking a solid economic pillar to its strategy for Asia after then-President Donald Trump quit a regional trade framework now known as CPTPP in 2017, but it has been wary of returning to a pact critics say threatens U.S. jobs.

A senior U.S. policy official for China said on Wednesday Washington aims to establish “common goals” on economic cooperation with Indo-Pacific countries in early 2022.

The Chinese embassy in Japan issued a statement on Saturday in which it said that Biden and Kishida’s video meeting made “groundless attacks” on China and “grossly interfered” in its internal affairs, adding that it had lodged stern representations.

“We urge Japan and the United States to follow the trend of the times, abandon narrow policies of zero-sum game and beggar-thy-neighbor, stop interfering in China’s internal affairs, and stop drawing small circles based on ideologies.

Friday’s summit followed other security-related meetings involving Indo-Pacific leaders – two-plus-two talks between Japan and France on Thursday and between Australian and British foreign and defense ministers on Friday.

Biden last year hosted a first in-person summit of the Quad grouping at which the leaders vowed to pursue a free and open Indo-Pacific “undaunted by coercion.” read more

China has stepped up military and diplomatic pressure to assert its sovereignty over Taiwan, which it claims as its own.

Kishida said this week Japan would beef up its defenses of islands near Taiwan, comments that followed a promise in October to revise security strategy so as to consider “all options, including possession of so-called enemy-strike capabilities.”

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Reporting by David Brunnstrom, Susan Heavey, Michael Martina and Paul Grant in Washington and Kiyoshi Takenaka and David Dolan in Tokyo; Additional reporting by Rami Ayub and Brenda Goh; Editing by Frances Kerry, Jonathan Oatis, Chizu Nomiyama and Jacqueline Wong

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Biden imposes first sanctions over North Korea weapons program after missile tests

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A missile is launched during what state media report is a hypersonic missile test at an undisclosed location in North Korea, January 11, 2022, in this photo released January 12, 2022 by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). KCNA via REUTERS

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WASHINGTON, Jan 12 (Reuters) – The Biden administration on Wednesday imposed its first sanctions over North Korea’s weapons programs following a series of North Korean missile launches, including two since last week.

The sanctions targeted six North Koreans, one Russian and a Russian firm Washington said were responsible for procuring goods for the programs from Russia and China.

The U.S. Treasury said the steps aimed both to prevent the advancement of North Korea’s programs and to impede its attempts to proliferate weapons technologies.

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The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden has sought unsuccessfully to engage Pyongyang in dialogue to persuade it to give up its nuclear bombs and missiles since taking office in January last year.

U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price said Washington remained committed to pursuing diplomacy with North Korea.

“What we have seen in recent days … only underscores our belief that if we are going to make progress, that we will need to engage in that dialogue,” he told a regular news briefing.

The Treasury Department said the sanctions followed six North Korean ballistic missile launches since September, each of which violated U.N. Security Council resolutions.

Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson said the moves targeted North Korea’s “continued use of overseas representatives to illegally procure goods for weapons.”

North Korea’s latest launches were “further evidence that it continues to advance prohibited programs despite the international community’s calls for diplomacy and denuclearization,” Nelson said in a statement.

It said the State Department had designated Russia-based North Korean Choe Myong Hyon, Russian national Roman Anatolyevich Alar and the Russian firm Parsek LLC for “activities or transactions that have materially contributed to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or their means of delivery.”

It said Choe Myong Hyon, a Vladivostok-based representative of North Korea’s Second Academy of Natural Sciences (SANS), had worked to procure telecommunications-related equipment from Russia.

Four China-based North Korean representatives of SANS-subordinate organizations – Sim Kwang Sok, Kim Song Hun, Kang Chol Hak and Pyon Kwang Chol – and one other Russia-based North Korean, O Yong Ho, were also targeted.

Sim Kwang Sok, based in Dalian, had worked to procure steel alloys and Kim Song Hun, who was based in Shenyang, software and chemicals, Treasury said.

In a statement, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that between at least 2016 and 2021, O Yong Ho had worked with Parsek LLC and Alar, the firms’s director for development, to procure multiple goods with ballistic missile applications, including Kevlar thread, aramid fiber, aviation oil, ball bearings, and precision milling machines.

ROCKET FUEL MIXTURES

Blinken said Alar also provided O Yong Ho with instructions for creating solid rocket fuel mixtures.

“The procurement and supply relationship between O Yong Ho, Roman Anatolyevich Alar, and Parsek LLC is a key source of missile-applicable goods and technology for the DPRK’s missile program,” his statement said.

It also said O Yong Ho had worked to procure items including aramid fiber, stainless steel tubes and ball bearings from “third countries” it did not name.

North Korea’s U.N. mission, Russia and China’s embassies in Washington and the Russian firm did not respond to requests for comment.

North Korean media said leader Kim Jong Un observed the test of a hypersonic missile on Tuesday, the second in less than a week after he vowed in a New Year speech to bolster the military with cutting-edge technology. read more

Tuesday’s test came hours after the U.S. mission to the United Nations, joined by Albania, France, Ireland, Japan and the United Kingdom, condemned last week’s launch and called on U.N. states to fulfill sanctions obligations. read more

U.N. resolutions ban North Korean ballistic missile and nuclear tests and impose sanctions.

Anthony Ruggiero, a sanctions expert in the former Trump administration that failed to persuade Kim to roll back his nuclear program despite unprecedented engagement, called the new sanctions “a good start.”

However, he said the Biden administration had allowed a reversal of sanctions pressure and added: “Biden needs to continue the designations to increase the pressure on the Kim regime.”

Price did not respond when asked why no Chinese individuals or entities were targeted, or specifically when asked if China and Russia were doing enough to enforce sanctions, but stressed the importance of all U.N. states doing so, while adding: “Obviously we’ve not seen all of that.”

Wednesday’s actions freeze any U.S.-related assets of those targeted and prohibit all dealings with them.

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Reporting by David Brunnstrom and Chris Gallagher; Additional reporting by Simon Lewis; Editing by Jonathan Oatis, Howard Goller and Grant McCool

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N.Korea’s Kim calls for more ‘military muscle’ after watching hypersonic missile test

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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks during the Eighth Conference of Military Educationists of the Korean People’s Army at the April 25 House of Culture in Pyongyang, North Korea in this undated photo released on December 7, 2021. KCNA via REUTERS

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  • Launch detected on Tuesday by Japan, S.Korea
  • Kim officially at test for first time since March 2020
  • U.S., EU condemn tests as threat to peace
  • Tests follow Kim’s vow to boost military forces

SEOUL, Jan 12 (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called for boosting the country’s strategic military forces as he observed the test of a hypersonic missile, state media said on Wednesday, officially attending a missile launch for the first time in nearly two years.

On Tuesday authorities in South Korea and Japan detected the suspected launch, which drew condemnation by authorities around the world and prompted an expression of concern from the U.N. secretary-general. read more

The second test of a “hypersonic missile” in less than a week underscored Kim’s New Year’s vow to bolster the military with cutting-edge technology at a time when talks with South Korea and the United States have stalled.

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After watching the test, Kim urged military scientists to “further accelerate the efforts to steadily build up the country’s strategic military muscle both in quality and quantity and further modernize the army,” KCNA news agency reported.

It was the first time since March 2020 that Kim had officially attended a missile test.

“His presence here would suggest particular attention on this programme,” Ankit Panda, a senior fellow at the U.S.-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, posted on Twitter.

Unlike some other recent tests, ruling party newspaper Rodong Sinmun published photos of Kim attending the launch on its front page.

“While Kim probably unofficially attended other tests in the interim, this appearance and its Page One feature on Rodong Sinmun is important,” said Chad O’Carroll, chief executive of Korea Risk Group, which monitors North Korea. “It means Kim is not concerned about being personally associated (with) tests of major new tech. And doesn’t care how the U.S. sees this.”

U.N. Security Council resolutions ban all North Korean ballistic missile and nuclear tests and have imposed sanctions over the programs.

Talks aimed at persuading North Korea to surrender or limit its arsenal of nuclear weapons and missiles have stalled, with Pyongyang saying it is open to diplomacy but only if the United States and its allies stop “hostile policies” such as sanctions or military drills.

U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland called the launches dangerous and destabilising.

“It obviously takes us in the wrong direction,” she said at a regular briefing in Washington on Tuesday. “As you know, the United States has been saying since this administration came in that we are open to dialogue with North Korea, that we are open to talking about COVID and humanitarian support, and instead they’re firing off missiles.”

The European Union on Tuesday condemned the latest North Korean missile launch as a “threat to international peace and security” and called on Pyongyang to resume diplomacy.

‘SUPERIOR MANOEUVERABILITY’

Despite their name, analysts say the main feature of hypersonic weapons is not speed – which can sometimes be matched or exceeded by traditional ballistic missile warheads – but their manoeuvrability, which makes them an acute threat to missile defence systems.

Photos released by state media appeared to show the same type of missile and warhead that was first tested last week, analysts said.

“The test-fire was aimed at the final verification of overall technical specifications of the developed hypersonic weapon system,” KCNA reported.

After its release from the rocket booster, a hypersonic glide vehicle made a 600 km (375 mile) “glide jump flight” and then 240 km of “corkscrew manoeuvering” before hitting a target in the sea 1,000 km away, the report said.

South Korean officials had questioned the capabilities of the missile after the first test last week, saying it did not appear to demonstrate the range and manoeuverability claimed in a state media report and featured a manoeuverable warhead rather than an actual glide vehicle.

On Tuesday, however, South Korea said the second test appeared to show improved performance, with the missile reaching top speeds up to 10 times the speed of sound (12,348 km per hour / 7,673 miles per hour), although they did not comment on its manoeuverability.

“The superior manoeuverability of the hypersonic glide vehicle was more strikingly verified through the final test-fire,” KCNA said.

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Reporting by Hyonhee Shin and Josh Smith; additional reporting by David Brunnstrom in Washington; editing by Jonathan Oatis and Richard Pullin

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N.Korea conducts second suspected missile test in less than a week

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A North Korea flag flutters next to concertina wire at the North Korean embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia March 9, 2017. REUTERS/Edgar Su/File Photo

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  • Launch detected by South Korea, Japan
  • Repeated N.Korea tests “extremely regrettable”: Japan PM
  • Last week N.Korea claimed test of “hypersonic missile”
  • U.S., partners condemn tests as significant threat

SEOUL/TOKYO, Jan 11 (Reuters) – North Korea fired what was believed to a ballistic missile on Tuesday, South Korea’s military and the Japanese coast guard said, the second apparent missile launch in less than a week after the reclusive state’s leader urged more military advances.

The suspected ballistic missile launch was detected around 7:27 a.m. (2227 GMT) from an inland area of North Korea toward the ocean off its east coast, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said in a statement.

The projectile appeared to have landed outside of Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), the Kyodo news agency reported, citing government sources in Tokyo.

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“That North Korea continues to launch missiles is extremely regrettable,” Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters, noting the United Nations had just finished holding discussions on how to respond to last week’s launch of what North Korea claimed was a “hypersonic missile.”

The launches by nuclear-armed North Korea underscored leader Kim Jong Un’s New Year’s vow to bolster the military to counter an unstable international situation amid stalled talks with South Korea and the United States.

“The (South Korean) military is maintaining a readiness posture while closely monitoring related trends under close cooperation between (South Korea) and the U.S. in preparation for additional launches,” the JCS statement said.

South Korean and U.S. intelligence agencies are conducting detailed analysis for additional information, it added.

‘SIGNIFICANT THREAT’

Last week, South Korean military officials cast doubts on the capabilities of the “hypersonic missile” North Korea claimed to have test fired on Wednesday, saying it appeared to represent limited progress over Pyongyang’s existing ballistic missiles.

Tuesday’s apparent launch came a day after the United States mission to the United Nations, joined by France, Ireland, Japan, the United Kingdom, and Albania, issued a joint statement condemning last week’s test.

“These actions increase the risk of miscalculation and escalation and pose a significant threat to regional stability,” U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said in the statement on Monday. Such tests not only improve the North’s capabilities, but expands what it can offer illicit arms clients and dealers around the world, she added.

“(North Korea) makes these military investments at the expense of the well-being of the North Korean people,” she said.

U.N. Security Council resolutions ban all ballistic missile and nuclear tests by North Korea, and have imposed sanctions over the programmes.

Thomas-Greenfield reiterated calls for countries around the world to enforce sanctions, and for North Korea to return to talks and abandon its missiles and nuclear weapons.

“Our goal remains the complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula,” she said.

The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday’s launch.

North Korea has said it is open to talk, but only if the United States and others drop “hostile policies” such as sanctions and military drills.

Few observers expect Kim to ever fully surrender his nuclear arsenal. North Korea argues its missile tests and other military activities are for self-defence and are similar to those regularly undertaken by other nations.

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Reporting by Hyonhee Shin and Josh Smith in Seoul, and the Tokyo bureau; Additional reporting by David Brunnstrom in Washington. Writing by Josh Smith. Editing by Chris Reese and Lincoln Feast

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Russia, China, Britain, U.S. and France say no one can win nuclear war

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Flags are seen in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Vienna, Austria May 23, 2021. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger

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MOSCOW/WASHINGTON, Jan 3 (Reuters) – China, Russia, Britain, the United States and France have agreed that a further spread of nuclear arms and a nuclear war should be avoided, according to a joint statement by the five nuclear powers published by the Kremlin on Monday.

It said that the five countries – which are the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council – consider it their primary responsibility to avoid war between the nuclear states and to reduce strategic risks, while aiming to work with all countries to create an atmosphere of security.

“We affirm that a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought,” the English-language version of the statement read.

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“As nuclear use would have far-reaching consequences, we also affirm that nuclear weapons — for as long as they continue to exist — should serve defensive purposes, deter aggression, and prevent war.”

France also released the statement, underscoring that the five powers reiterated their determination for nuclear arms control and disarmament. They would continue bilateral and multilateral approaches to nuclear arms control, it said.

The statement from the so-called P5 group comes as bilateral relations between the United States and Moscow have fallen to their lowest since the end of the Cold War, while relations between Washington and China are also at a low over a range of disagreements.

The Pentagon in November sharply increased its estimate of China’s projected nuclear weapons arsenal over the coming years, saying Beijing could have 700 warheads by 2027 and possibly 1,000 by 2030.

Washington has repeatedly urged China to join it and Russia in a new arms control treaty.

Geopolitical tensions between Moscow and Western countries have increased over concerns about Russia’s military buildup near neighbouring Ukraine. Moscow says it can move its army around its own territory as it deems necessary.

Last Thursday U.S. President Joe Biden told his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that a possible move on Ukraine will draw sanctions and an increased U.S. presence in Europe, where tensions are high after Russia’s military buildup at the border.

U.S. and Russian officials will hold security talks on Jan. 10 to discuss concerns about their respective military activity and confront rising tensions over Ukraine, the two countries said.

A conference on a major nuclear treaty that was set to begin on Tuesday at the United Nations has been postponed until August due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Reporting by Andrey Ostroukh in Moscow and Daphne Psaledakis and Jonathan Landay in Washington; Editing by Kevin Liffey, Angus MacSwan and Jonathan Oatis

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U.S. sounds caution against optimism by Iran, Russia over nuclear talks

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  • Talks on reviving Iran nuclear deal resumed on Monday
  • Western officials have said talks going too slowly
  • U.S. says too soon to tell Iran has a constructive approach
  • Iranian minister says talks going the right way

Dec 28 (Reuters) – The United States on Tuesday expressed caution over upbeat comments by Iran and Russia about talks in Vienna to salvage the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, saying it was still too soon to say if Tehran had returned to the negotiations with a constructive approach.

Iran and Russia both gave upbeat views on Tuesday about talks that kicked off this week to salvage Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with global powers, although Western nations have said the negotiations are going too slowly.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said a deal was possible in the near future if other parties showed “good faith” while Russian envoy Mikhail Ulyanov said a working group was making “indisputable progress” in the eighth round of talks.

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Speaking at a telephonic press briefing, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said there was some progress in the last round of talks but it was too soon to tell whether Tehran, in the current round, returned to the table to build on those gains.

“It’s really too soon to tell whether Iran has returned with a more constructive approach to this round,” Price said. “We are now assessing, in the course of these talks, whether the Iranians came back with an agenda of new issues or preliminary solutions to the ones already presented,” Price said.

The original agreement lifted sanctions against Tehran in exchange for restrictions on its atomic activities but Donald Trump pulled Washington out of the deal in 2018, a year after he became U.S president. Iran later breached many of the deal’s nuclear restrictions and kept pushing well beyond them.

The latest round of indirect talks between Iran and the United States resumed on Monday in Vienna, with Tehran focused on getting U.S. sanctions lifted again, as they were under the original bargain, despite scant progress on reining in its atomic activities. read more

Iran refuses to meet U.S. officials directly, meaning other parties to the deal besides the United States and Iran — Russia, China, France, Britain, Germany and the European Union — must shuttle between the two sides.

The seventh round of talks, the first under Iran’s new hardline President Ebrahim Raisi, ended 11 days ago after some new Iranian demands were added to a working text.

“The Vienna talks are headed in a good direction,” Iranian Minister Amirabdollahian said in comments to reporters broadcast by state media. “We believe that if other parties continue the round of talks which just started with good faith, reaching a good agreement for all parties is possible.”

The U.S. delegation, led by Special Envoy Rob Malley, will be in a better position in the coming days to determine whether Iran has to come to the latest round of talks with a ‘fundamentally different position,” Price said.

Deputy Secretary General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) Enrique Mora and Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani and delegations wait for the start of a meeting of the JCPOA Joint Commission in Vienna, Austria December 17, 2021. EU Delegation in Vienna/EEAS/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

Iran insists all U.S. sanctions must be lifted before steps are taken on the nuclear side, while Western negotiators say nuclear and sanctions steps must be balanced in the agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA).

URGENT NEGOTIATIONS

European negotiators also said some technical progress had been made in the last round of talks to accommodate Iranian requests, but warned that the parties only had weeks, not months, to salvage the deal.

France, Germany and the United Kingdom said in a statement on Tuesday that technical progress had been made in the last round and the parties now needed to fully focus on the key outstanding issues, particularly nuclear and sanctions.

They said while they were not setting an artificial deadline, there were weeks not months left to strike a deal.

“The negotiation is urgent – and our teams are here to work swiftly and in good faith towards getting a deal.”

Ulyanov, the Russian envoy, said on Tuesday that a working group was making progress. “Sanctions lifting is being actively discussed in informal settings,” he wrote on Twitter.

The 2015 deal extended the time Iran would need to obtain enough fissile material for a nuclear bomb – if it chose to – to at least a year from about two to three months. Most experts say that time is now less than before the deal, although Iran says it only wants to master nuclear technology for civil uses.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said Israel would not automatically oppose a nuclear deal but world powers must take a firmer position.

Israel says it will never allow Iran to get nuclear weapons and that all options are on the table. Israeli leaders have said that a nuclear Iran would pose an existential threat to Israel.

(This story refiles to fix spelling of word ‘too’ in first paragraph)

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Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk and Daphne Psaledakis in Washington, Miranda Murray in Berlin, Jeffrey Heller, Dan Williams and Ari Rabinovitch in Jerusalem, and Dubai newsroom; Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by David Clarke and Alistair Bell

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Iran warns of “heavy price” after report of U.S.-Israeli military drill plans

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A view of the Natanz uranium enrichment facility 250 km (155 miles) south of the Iranian capital Tehran, March 30, 2005. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi

Dec 11 (Reuters) – A top Iranian military official warned on Saturday of a “heavy price” for aggressors, state media said, after a report of U.S. and Israeli plans for possible military drills to prepare for strikes against Iran’s nuclear sites if diplomacy fails.

“Providing conditions for military commanders to test Iranian missiles with real targets will cost the aggressors a heavy price,” Nournews, affiliated with Iran’s top security body, said on Twitter, citing an unnamed military official.

A senior U.S. official told Reuters on Thursday that U.S. and Israeli defense chiefs were expected to discuss possible military exercises that would prepare for a worst-case scenario to destroy Iran’s nuclear facilities should diplomacy fail and if their nations’ leaders request it. read more

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Reporting by Dubai newsroom
Editing by Gareth Jones

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EXCLUSIVE As diplomacy stutters, U.S., Israel to discuss military drills for Iran scenario -U.S. official

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The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Vienna, Austria May 23, 2021. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo

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WASHINGTON, Dec 8 (Reuters) – U.S. and Israeli defense chiefs are expected on Thursday to discuss possible military exercises that would prepare for a worst-case scenario to destroy Iran’s nuclear facilities should diplomacy fail and if their nations’ leaders request it, a senior U.S. official told Reuters.

The scheduled U.S. talks with visiting Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz follow an Oct. 25 briefing by Pentagon leaders to White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on the full set of military options available to ensure that Iran would not be able to produce a nuclear weapon, the official said on Wednesday, speaking on condition of anonymity. Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons, saying it wants to master nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.

The U.S.-Israeli preparations, which have not been previously reported, underscore Western concern about difficult nuclear talks with Iran that President Joe Biden had hoped would revive a 2015 nuclear deal abandoned by his predecessor Donald Trump.

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But U.S. and European officials have voiced dismay after talks last week at sweeping demands by Iran’s new, hardline government, heightening suspicions in the West that Iran is playing for time while advancing its nuclear program.

The U.S. official declined to offer details on the potential military exercises.

“We’re in this pickle because Iran’s nuclear program is advancing to a point beyond which it has any conventional rationale,” the official said, while still voicing hope for discussions.

The Israeli embassy in Washington and Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The European Union official chairing the talks has said they will resume on Thursday, and the U.S. special envoy for Iran plans to join them over the weekend. read more

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said last week that Iran had started the process of enriching uranium to up to 20% purity with one cascade, or cluster, of 166 advanced IR-6 machines at its Fordow plant, which dug into a mountain, making harder to attack.

The 2015 agreement gave Iran sanctions relief but imposed strict limits on its uranium enrichment activities, extending the time it would need to produce enough fissile material for a nuclear weapon, if it chose to, to at least a year from around two to three months. Most nuclear experts say that period is now considerably shorter.

Underlining how badly eroded the deal is, that pact does not allow Iran to enrich uranium at Fordow at all, let alone with advanced centrifuges.

COMPROMISED

With the deal’s nuclear benefits now badly compromised, some Western officials say there is little time left before the foundation of the deal is damaged beyond repair.

Such drills by the United States and Israel could address calls by Dennis Ross, a former senior U.S. official and Middle East expert, and others to openly signal to Tehran that the United States and Israel are still serious about preventing it from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

“Biden needs to disabuse Iran of the notion that Washington will not act militarily and will stop Israel from doing so,” Ross wrote last month.

Ross even suggested the United States should perhaps signal a willingness to give the Israeli’s the U.S. military’s bunker-busting Massive Ordnance Penetrator, a 30,000-pound bomb.

Asked about such remarks about deterrence, the senior U.S. official said: “When President Biden says Iran will never get a nuclear weapon, I mean, he means it.”

Central Intelligence Agency Director Bill Burns said on Monday that the CIA does not believe Iran’s supreme leader has decided to take steps to weaponize a nuclear device but noted advances in its ability to enrich uranium, one pathway to the fissile material for a bomb.

Burns cautioned that, even if Iran decided to go ahead, it would still require a lot of work to weaponize that fissile material before attaching a nuclear weapon to a missile or other delivery system.

“But they’re further along in their mastery of the nuclear fuel cycle and that’s the kind of knowledge that is very difficult to sanction away or make disappear, as well,” he said.

U.S. officials have also long worried about America’s ability to detect and destroy dispersed components of Iran’s nuclear weaponization program once enough fissile material for a bomb were produced.

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Reporting by Phil Stewart; additional reporting by Arshad Mohammad and Matt Spetalnick; editing by Mary Milliken and Grant McCool

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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