Tag: nuclear weapons

Kazakhstan is ready to play a key role in global security by hosting an international nuclear fuel bank under the auspices of the International Atomic Energy Agency, writes Kanat Saudabayev, the country's secretary of state, in an exclusive commentary for EurActiv.

Policymakers and influential media warned that Turkey's developing ties with Iran could be counterproductive to the EU's efforts to convince Teheran that it should abandon its nuclear weapons programme.

Iran today (28 September) test-fired a missile capable of hitting Israel, just days before a crucial United Nations meeting in Geneva at which the five members of the world's 'nuclear club' and Germany are expected to discuss the Islamic Republic's nuclear programme.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, has said on several occasions that "the production, stockpiling, and use of nuclear weapons are forbidden under Islam," observes European Policy Centre (EPC) founding chair Stanley Crossick in a recent post on Blogactiv.

France, Germany and the UK are proposing extra EU sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme, international media reported yesterday (26 February), although France said no such measures would be passed any time soon.

As US-Russia relations come under the greatest strain since the end of the Cold War, the Commission will discuss how escalating tensions can be defused following Russia's decision to pull out of a key arms-control treaty.

Constructive talks, centring around a two-month uranium-enrichment freeze, encourage Javier Solana to push for more meetings. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has given the development a cautious welcome.

In this dossier, published by Deutsche-Aussenpolitik.De, Marco Overhaus analyses the European contribution to the negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program, focusing on the consequences for the EU’s international role.

As the tension builds up to a UN showdown after Iran broke the seals to its nuclear research facilities on 10 January, political analyst Timothy Garton Ash calls for great caution in the west's handling of the next steps. 

The EU and the US are pushing the IAEA to bring Iran’s nuclear programme before the UN's Security Council, but convincing Russia and China to back the idea will be difficult.

The EU and US have adopted a new joint approach to Iran’s intractability on its nuclear development programme.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has published its report on the future of nuclear energy in the world, saying that nuclear could experience a revival due to concerns about climate change.

Industry representatives and NGOs discussed the challenges and opportunities of a 'hydrogen economy' in a debate organised by Friends of Europe on 13 October.

The Commission's ambitious plans to put Europe on the road to a clean and sustainable hydrogen energy future were underlined by a well-attended 2-day conference on 16-17 June.

A Eurobarometer survey on EU citizens' opinions on energy shows that the public wants more research and investment in renewables and energy-saving technologies. On the other hand, Europeans seem to be unaware of the need to change individual energy consumption behaviours and want industry to carry the burden.

WWF and the European Renewable Energy Federation warn that governments should do more to reach the targets set in the directive on renewable electricity.

An independent British think tank, the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), says Iraq could build such a weapon within a matter of months if it were able to obtain the necessary radioactive materials. The IISS report, released on 9 September, also concludes Iraq probably has large stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons, as well as a small number of long-range missiles.

The Commission finally adopted on Wednesday 7 November its long-awaited plans to stimulate the use of alternative fuels for transport. An action plan and two proposals for directives should establish minimum levels of biofuels to be used in transport and fiscal measures allowing Member States to reduce excise duties on fuels derived from agricultural sources.

Swedish Business leader presents vision for new nuclear energy growth in the EU

EU Energy ministers will have a first debate on the Commission's Green Paper on security of energy supply on Tuesday 5 December

The European Commission is preparing a new energy policy which might lead to a comeback for nuclear power