South Korea Seeking Trilateral Talks on North: What We're Reading Now
Nov 10, 2011

IRAN
Russian scientist who figures in IAEA report denies helping Iran build a nuclear weapon
Washington Post -- November 10, 2011
A Russian scientist accused of helping Iran develop technology necessary to build a nuclear weapon has denied assisting its nuclear program, a Russian newspaper reported Thursday.

Russian Scientist Denies Iranian Nuclear Role, Kommersant Says
Henry Meyer, Bloomberg -- November 10, 2011
A Russian scientist denied helping Iran to develop a nuclear bomb following a U.S. media report about his suspected role, the Kommersant newspaper reported, citing an interview with the expert.

NORTH KOREA
South Korea Seeking Trilateral Talks on North
Global Security Newswire -- November 9, 2011
South Korea is pushing to meet with Japan and the United States so that the three allies can align their respective postures for responding to the North Korean nuclear impasse, Kyodo News reported on Wednesday.

LIBYA
Desert chief says al-Qaida branch got Libyan arms
Ahmed Mohamed, Associated Press -- November 10, 2011
A desert chief with al-Qaida's North Africa branch has confirmed fears that his terror organization procured weapons from stockpiles left unguarded in Libya after the fall of Moammar Gadhafi.

Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum among GOP candidates taking anti-Iranian hardline: What We're Reading
Nov 09, 2011

IRAN
Iran Escalates Anti-U.S. Rhetoric Over Nuclear Report
Robert F. Worth, The New York Times -- November 9, 2011
Professing outrage over the release of a United Nations report on Iranian nuclear ambitions, Iran’s leaders escalated their anti-American vitriol on Wednesday, calling the report a fabrication, denouncing its chief author as a Washington stooge and vowing that their country would not be bullied into abandoning its nuclear program.

Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum among GOP candidates taking anti-Iranian hardline
Shira Schoenberg, Boston Globe -- November 9, 2011
The Republican presidential candidates are urging the use of force, sanctions, and even friendship to deter Iran, after the International Atomic Energy Agency released a report saying it had credible information the nation was developing nuclear weapons.

NORTH KOREA
US Korean Envoy ‘Optimistic” on New Nuclear Talks
Voice of America -- November 9, 2011
A former U.S. envoy in charge of North Korean policy says multi-national talks aimed at ending Pyongyang's rogue nuclear weapons program could resume in the near future.

New commander of US 7th fleet says he worries most about North Korea, not so much about China
Washington Post -- November 9, 2011
A senior U.S. Navy commander said Wednesday he worries much more about North Korea than about other Asian countries, including rising military power China.  Vice Adm. Scott Swift, who took over as commander of the 7th Fleet in September, said that while the U.S. military has an “open and robust” relationship with China, he spends a lot of time thinking about North Korea because of its “unpredictability.”

Russia Does Not See Deal on NATO Missile Shield Before 2012 Summit: What We're Reading Now
Oct 31, 2011

IRAN
Michele Bachmann: Force an option against Iran after alleged US-based assassination plot
Shira Schoenberg, Boston Globe - October 30, 2011
Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann would not rule out the use of force in responding to an alleged Iranian attempt to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the United States.

Plausible Culpability
Daniel Byman, Foreign Policy (Blog) - October 28, 2011
Incredulity has been the most common response to reports that Iran plotted with Mexican drug traffickers to kill the Saudi ambassador to the United States, Adel al-Jubeir, at a Washington, D.C. restaurant. Given past U.S. intelligence failures, the opacity of the Iranian regime, and the seemingly clumsy nature of the operation, it is easy to dismiss the Obama administration's allegations that Iran planned such a risky attack. But there are plenty of reasons to think that the Islamic Republic's senior leadership was responsible for the plot.

The Bloated Nuclear Weapons Budget
NYT Editorial - October 29, 2011
Twenty years after the end of the cold war, the United States still has about 2,500 nuclear weapons deployed and 2,600 more as backup. The Obama administration, in an attempt to mollify Congressional Republicans, has also committed to modernizing an already hugely expensive complex of nuclear labs and production facilities.

NORTH & SOUTH KOREA
Kim Jong-il to North Koreans in Libya: Don't bother coming home
John M. Gilona, LA Times - October 31, 2011
Worried they might return with provocative tales of a populist uprising that just toppled another Middle East dictator, strongman Kim Jong-il has issued a decree to North Koreans in Libya – don’t bother coming home.

Opinion: Iraq invasion, not withdrawal, was gift to Iran: What We're Reading Now
Oct 28, 2011

IRAN
Demands Grow for Action Against Alleged Iranian Plot
Sara Sorcher, Global Security Newswire -- October 27, 2011
As Republicans on the House Homeland Security Committee demanded that the Obama administration take more serious action against Iran for its alleged role in the purported plot to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador and bomb embassies in Washington, witnesses testifying before two key subcommittees on Wednesday called for everything from killing senior members of Iran’s elite Quds Force to limited cyberattacks within Iran.

Iraq invasion, not withdrawal, was gift to Iran
Tony Karon, TIME/CNN -- October 27, 2011
Outlandish posturing on foreign policy matters is par for the course in a U.S. electoral season, but the claim that President Barack Obama will deliver Iraq on a plate to Iran by honoring the U.S. treaty obligation to withdraw American troops by New Year's Day is worth closer scrutiny.

Iran pulls out of diplomatic event
ESPN -- October 27, 2011
North and South Korea and India and Pakistan are among 10 nations competing in the latest version of pingpong diplomacy, but Iran backed out of a chance to compete alongside American players.

NORTH KOREA
Panetta Voices Skepticism on North Korea Talks
Elisabeth Bumiller, The New York Times -- October 27, 2011
Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta cast doubt on Thursday on talks aimed at persuading North Korea to abandon its nuclear program despite more positive public comments from negotiators for both countries earlier this week.

North Korea bans citizens working in Libya from returning home
Julian Ryall, The Telegraph -- October 27, 2011
North Korea has banned its own citizens working in Libya from returning home, apparently out of fear that they will reveal the extent - and final outcomes - of the revolutions that have shaken the Arab world.

US Envoy: N. Korea Talks 'Positive, Constructive': What We're Reading Now
Oct 26, 2011

IRAN
Panetta warns Iran not to meddle in Iraq
AFP -- October 26, 2011
US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on Wednesday warned Iran that it should not meddle in Iraq when American forces leave the country at the end of this year.

Iran Makes New Arrests in Fraud Case
Rick Gladstone, New York Times -- October 25, 2011
The Iranian authorities have widened their investigation into what they say is a record $2.6 billion embezzlement uncovered in a network of Iranian banks last month, interrogating at least 67 people and putting 31 of them under arrest, state media reported.

NORTH KOREA
US Envoy: N. Korea Talks 'Positive, Constructive'
Voice of America -- October 25, 2011
Talks between the United States and North Korea on resuming stalled nuclear negotiations have ended in Geneva, with a U.S. official calling them "positive and constructive."

Top UN relief official urges US, NKorea to avoid humanitarian aid discussions at nuclear talks
The Washington Post -- October 24, 2011
The U.N.’s top relief official says nuclear talks in Switzerland between the United States and North Korea should avoid discussions of humanitarian assistance for the chronically hungry Asian country.

Official: May be 'weeks and months' before North Korea responds on talks
Jill Dougherty, CNN -- October 26, 2011
A senior State Department official is tempering expectations on how quickly North Korea could respond to just-concluded discussions with the United States in Geneva, Switzerland.

US's most powerful nuclear bomb being dismantled: What We're Reading Now
Oct 25, 2011

IRAN
U.N. report seen worsening fear over Iran nuclear plans
Reuters -- October 24, 2011
The U.N. nuclear watchdog is expected to publish intelligence soon pointing to military dimensions to Iran's nuclear activities but stopping short of saying explicitly that Tehran is trying to build atom bombs, Western diplomats say.

China urges IAEA to solve Iran nuclear issue through dialogue, negotiations
Xinhua -- October 25, 2011
China adamantly believes that dialogue and negotiations are the proper ways to solve the Iranian nuclear issue, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said Tuesday at a daily press briefing.

NORTH KOREA
US envoy: Progress in NKorea talks, but no deal on resuming full nuclear negotiations
The Associated Press -- October 25, 2011
The U.S. envoy leading talks with North Korea on Pyongyang’s nuclear program says two days of meetings in Geneva have narrowed differences between the two sides.

'South remains defenseless against North’s missile threats'
Lee Tae-hoon, Korea Times -- October 25, 2011
Despite its continuous efforts to beef up air defense capabilities, officials acknowledge that South Korea remains highly vulnerable to growing nuclear and missile threats from North Korea. <

What Kim Jong-Il Learned from Qaddafi's Fall: Never Disarm: What We're Reading Now
Oct 24, 2011

IRAN
AP Exclusive: Note shows big power split over Iran
George Jahn, AP - October 24, 2011
Russia and China are urging the chief U.N nuclear inspector to scrap or delay U.S.-backed plans to reveal intelligence on Iran's alleged nuclear arms experiments, in a bluntly worded confidential document obtained Monday by The Associated Press.

Ahmadinejad on Gadhafi, Syria, alleged plot, nuclear weapons and America's role
Global Public Square (CNN) - October 22, 2011
Fareed Zakaria just interviewed Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. They talked about Moammar Gadhafi's death, policy toward Syria, the alleged Iranian plot to assassinate the Saudi Ambassador to the U.S., Iran's nuclear ambitions and America's global role.

Iran Could Face New Atomic Penalties: EU
Global Security Newswire - October 24, 2011
Iran could face new punitive measures if it does not join new multilateral discussions over atomic activities some countries suspect are geared toward weapons development, the European Union said on Sunday

NORTH KOREA
What Kim Jong-Il Learned from Qaddafi's Fall: Never Disarm
Mira Rapp-Hooper & Kenneth N. Waltz, The Atlantic - October 24, 2011
As the U.S. tries to restart multiparty talks with North Korea, it may find that the rogue state suddenly sees greater value in keeping its nuclear arsenal.

UN says North Korea needs food aid, not politics: What We're Reading Now
Oct 21, 2011

IRAN
Iran to soon move nuclear material to bunker - sources
Fredrik Dahl, Reuters - October 21, 2011
Iran plans to soon start moving nuclear material to an underground site for the pursuit of sensitive atomic activities, diplomatic sources say, a move likely to add to Western fears about Tehran's intentions.

Tehran's Domestic Discontents
Ray Takeyh, NYT (op-ed) - October 21, 2011
Iran’s response to Washington’s accusations that Tehran was involved in a bizarre assassination plot on U.S. soil discloses more about the Islamic Republic than its maladroit penchant toward violence.

NORTH KOREA
NK to hold onto nukes after Gadhafi fall
Kim Young-jin, The Korea Times - October 21, 2011
As the world reacted to the death of ousted Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi, the North Korean people on Friday were predictably deprived of the news, with state media making no mention of the grisly demise of one of leader Kim Jong-il’s shrinking list of fellow dictators.

UN says North Korea needs food aid, not politics
AP - October 21, 2011
Wealthier countries need to put aside politics to help millions of North Koreans going hungry from food shortages, the U.N.' top relief official said Friday, renewing an appeal for assistance that has largely gone unmet.

Stuxnet-like virus points to new round of cyber war: What We're Reading Now
Oct 20, 2011

IRAN
Russia concerned about Iran nuclear report: diplomats
Fredrik Dahl, Reuters - October 19, 2011
Russia fears a U.N. report which is expected to heighten suspicions about Iran's atomic ambitions could undermine Moscow's initiative to help resolve a nuclear dispute with Tehran, diplomatic sources said on Wednesday.

How far will newest U.N. nuclear report on Iran go?
Pam Benson, CNN (Blog) - October 18, 2011
Amid new reports indicating Iran's nuclear program is faltering, the international nuclear watchdog agency is putting the finishing touches on its latest assessment and it might go further in tying Iran to a possible weapons program.

NORTH KOREA
Autumn harvest watched warily in food-poor NKorea
Jeah H. Lee, AP - October 20, 2011
This autumn, as farmers fan out into fields of corn, wheat, rice and cabbage, such evocative pastoral scenes — the stuff of centuries-old Dutch landscape paintings — also are a reminder of the challenges North Korea faces in feeding its people.

Six-party talks inch closer to resumption
Kim Young-jin, The Korea Times - October 20, 2011
A series of diplomatic moves over North Korea’s nuclear program is cautiously inching regional players closer to resuming long-stalled multilateral negotiations, analysts said Thursday.

Pakistan warns Afghanistan after pact with India: What We're Reading Now
Oct 06, 2011

IRAN
   
Pressure builds on Iran at nuclear watchdog
Barbara Slavin, Asia Times - October 6, 2011
As Iran continues a slow march toward potential nuclear weapons capability, diplomatic action to contain the program is likely to shift to the United Nations' International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), whose director general, Yukiya Amano, has taken a harder line than his predecessor about alleged military research by Iran's nuclear scientists.

Is Israel Again Weighing an Attack on Iran's Nuclear Facilities?
Tony Karon, TIME (blog) - October 5, 2011
Panetta's comments, coming barely a month after the U.S. reportedly agreed to deliver 55 bunker-busting GBU-28 bombs to Israel, were widely viewed as an "down, boy" message to any adventurist bomb-Iran impulses on the part of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak.

NORTH & SOUTH KOREA
South Korea’s new nuclear envoy heads to US for talks on North Korea’s atomic program
AFP - October 6, 2011
South Korea’s new chief nuclear envoy is heading to the United States for talks on North Korea’s nuclear ambitions. South Korea’s Foreign Ministry says Lim Sung-nam left on a three-day trip Thursday to meet with State Department and White House officials.

S. Korean Navy Says New Base Will Not Host US Military Vessels
Steve Herman, VoA - October 5, 2011
South Korean defense officials say a controversial proposed naval base, off the southern coast on Jeju island, will not allow permanent stationing of U.S. naval vessels.  And, they say the facility, to be completed in 2015, is meant to deter North Korea, not China.