In this article on The Diplomat's Flashpoints blog, Rory Medcalf looks at the silver linings surrounding North Korea's nuclear test.
Nuclear Policy Centre: Recent Publications
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North Korea's nuclear test: a silver lining?
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No good options to curb Pyongyang
In this opinion piece in The Australian, Lowy Institute International Security Program Director Rory Medcalf argues that the failure of North Korea’s Friday-the-13th missile test raise the risks of a nuclear test by the hermit kingdom. He warns that there are no good options for getting North Korea to abandon its nuclear and missile programs, but that any solution will need greater pressure from China.
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Disarming doubt: the future of extended nuclear deterrence in East Asia
Strategic uncertainty in East Asia is leaving nations look to their defences. At the same time, the United States is leading a push to reduce the role of nuclear weapons in international security. In this major international research report, the Lowy Institute's Rory Medcalf and Fiona Cunningham have worked with a team of experts from Japan, China, South Korea and Australia to look at what these cross-cutting trends mean for the future of nuclear weapons in the security of US allies in Asia.
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KJI won't take his nukes to the grave
It was shaping up to be a big week for the North Korean nuclear diplomacy.
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Uranium sales to India would spread trust, not nuclear arms
In this opinion piece in The Age newspaper, the Lowy Institute’s Rory Medcalf addresses the common non-proliferation criticisms of possible Australian uranium sales to India. He writes that, on balance, a policy change at the December 2011 Australian Labor Party conference would build a new foundation of trust in Australia-India relations and help Canberra adapt to a changed non-proliferation order in the Asian century.
The Age, 2 December 2011, p. 15 -
A nuclear weapon-free world? Prospects for Obama's nuclear agenda
In this lecture under the Lowy Institute's Canberra Food for Thought series, leading nuclear expert Professor Scott Sagan of Stanford University weighs up the achievements and the challenges ahead for the Obama nuclear agenda. This event, moderated by the Lowy Institute's Rory Medcalf, was supported by the Lowy Institute's partnership with the Nuclear Security Project of the Nuclear Threat Initiative.
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After Fukushima: Nuclear power without proliferation?
There were high expectations for the growth of nuclear power in the years leading up to the Fukushima nuclear accident on 11 March 2011, as concerns about energy security and climate change prompted governments to reconsider their energy options. But the expansion of nuclear power has posed serious challenges to the non-proliferation regime, raising new questions about threats and risks.
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China-India: In nuclear denial
The list of strategic tensions in the China-India relationship is dismally long.
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The dangers of denial: nuclear weapons in China-India relations
Is a dangerous nuclear competition emerging between the two most populous nations? In this Lowy Institute Analysis, Fiona Cunningham and Rory Medcalf warn of nuclear dangers as China and India rise. The authors call for a strategic stability dialogue embedded in mutual respect, to ensure possible future confrontations do not involve nuclear threats or misjudgments.
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New voluntary code for reactor exports
Just over a week ago, the giants of the nuclear power industry announced a new voluntary code of conduct that will guide their future nuclear reactor exports.