Biden said to tell Mossad chief that US not close to return to Iran nuke deal
US president Joe Biden reportedly told Mossad chief Yossi Cohen that the US is not close to returning to the nuclear deal with Iran, according to a news report Sunday.
nuclear
Iran expects sanctions on banks, oil to be lifted based on nuclear talks
Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator said that Tehran expects US sanctions on oil, banks and other sectors and on most individuals and institutions to be lifted based on agreements reached so far at talks in Vienna, Iranian state media reported on Saturday.
China nuclear buildup faster than expected, U.S. now believes
China’s military is advancing its nuclear arsenal and delivery systems so fast the Defense Intelligence Agency has had to move up its estimate of when Beijing will double its warhead stockpile, the general in charge of military intelligence told Congress on Thursday.
US eyes major rollback of Iran sanctions to revive nuclear deal
The Biden administration is considering a near wholesale rollback of some of the most stringent Trump-era sanctions imposed on Iran in a bid to get the Islamic Republic to return to compliance with a landmark 2015 nuclear accord, according to current and former US officials and others familiar with the matter.
Kerry Denies Telling Iranians About Covert Israeli Operations; State Dept. Says It Was Public Knowledge
Facing calls for his resignation, President Biden’s climate envoy John Kerry on Monday denied as “unequivocally false” claims that he had informed Iran’s foreign minister about covert Israeli military strikes against Iranian facilities in Syria.
Iran Nuclear Pact Talks Resume
World powers resumed talks Tuesday in Vienna about revitalizing the 2015 international pact to restrain Iran’s nuclear development program and bring the United States back into the accord that former U.S. President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from in 2018.
Leaked: Russia Sabotaged Iran Nuclear Deal to Prevent Tehran from Normalizing with West
Leaked audio tapes that reveal the behind-the-scenes power struggles of Iranian officials have recently been published by the New York Times. In the leaks, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif lamented that it is the Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) who implements policy, overruling governmental decisions.
Ukraine Recalls 35th Anniversary Of Chernobyl Blast Amid Misery and Hope
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky was due Monday to visit the Chernobyl exclusion zone to remember the 35th anniversary of the world’s worst nuclear accident. His address to Ukrainians came as the tragedy is still being felt among suffering survivors who once lived in the area, where rare species have taken over.
IDF chief to make first US visit next week to discuss Iran, Hezbollah
IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi will travel to the United States on Sunday to discuss the threat of Iran’s nuclear program and its entrenchment throughout the region, the military said Friday.
IDF probing why air defenses didn’t intercept Syrian anti-aircraft missile
The Israel Defense Forces launched an investigation to determine why its air defenses failed to intercept an errant surface-to-air missile fired from Syria that landed in southern Israel on Thursday morning.
US official: We’re updating Israel on Iran talks in Vienna despite differences
The US has been updating Israel on the progress of indirect negotiations with Iran over a possible return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action and will continue a policy of transparency moving forward, a senior State Department official said Wednesday.
China engaged in ‘breathtaking’ nuclear expansion, STRATCOM commander warns
China’s military is engaged in a “very rapid” expansion of nuclear forces, which threatens U.S. security and is complicating efforts to deter both Russia as well as China, the commander of the Strategic Command told Congress on Wednesday.
China builds pier for aircraft carrier in Africa
China has built a pier large enough to hold an aircraft carrier close to its only naval base in Africa, USNI reported Tuesday. Recently completed, the pier is in the state of Djibouti, and is near the Bab el Mandeb entrance to the Red Sea from the Gulf of Aden.
Israel hits back after Dimona nuclear reactor rocket alert
The Israeli military said early Thursday that a missile was fired from neighboring Syria, and that it had struck Syrian missile batteries in retaliation.
Important disagreements between US and Iran in nuclear talks persist
Important disagreements between the United States and Iran persist after the latest round of indirect nuclear talks in Vienna this week, with the negotiations still far from conclusion and the outcome uncertain, a senior State Department official said on Wednesday.
Rouhani: 60%-70% of issues resolved in Vienna nuclear talks
High-level talks in Vienna aimed at bringing the United States back into the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran have already resolved 60-70 percent of the key issues, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani was quoted by state media as saying Tuesday.
Top Iran official: Power fully restored at Natanz, enrichment renewed
Power has been restored in Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility and uranium enrichment activities there have been renewed after a blast at the site earlier this month, the head of the country’s atomic agency said Tuesday.
Iran fears Israeli spy ring operating from within the country: media report
As the shadow war between Iran and Israel appears to be escalating, recent attacks in the Islamic Republic foreshadow an underground network might be active inside Iran, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.
Israeli Military Officials Unite in Opposition to Biden Admin’s Iran Deal
A group of more than 2,000 former high-ranking Israeli military, law enforcement, and intelligence community officials are warning the Biden administration against inking a new nuclear deal with Iran, saying the rush to negotiate with Iran directly endangers Israel and its newfound Arab allies.
Iran, IAEA start talks on unexplained uranium traces
The U.N. nuclear watchdog and Iran on Monday started talks aimed at obtaining explanations from Tehran on the origin of uranium traces at found at undeclared locations in Iran, an issue which could affect efforts to revive Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal.