The United States intervened to block South Korea from developing nuclear weapons in the 1970s, according to newly declassified Korean government documents.
South Korea was seeking to acquire nuclear reactors from Canada and nuclear reprocessing technology from France in support of a weapons program, but U.S. pressure led to cancellation of the latter purchase.
See “Park Sought to Develop Nuclear Weapons,” Korea Times, January 15.
Meanwhile, the island nation of Barbados this week ratified the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban. A total of 142 countries have now ratified the treaty, which prohibits all nuclear explosions.
The FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) paints a picture of a Congress that is working to both protect and accelerate nuclear modernization programs while simultaneously lacking trust in the Pentagon and the Department of Energy to execute them.
For Impact Fellow John Whitmer, working in public service was natural. “I’ve always been around people who make a living by caring.”
While advanced Chinese language proficiency and cultural familiarity remain irreplaceable skills, they are neither necessary nor sufficient for successful open-source analysis on China’s nuclear forces.
To maximize clean energy deployment, we must address the project development and political barriers that have held us back from smart policymaking and implementation that can withstand political change. Here’s how.