North Korean Test Site Destroyed | Italy's New Prime Minister | Salvaging the Iran Deal

Council on Foreign Relations Newsletter If you are unable to see the message below, click here to view. May 24, 2018 Daily News Brief   TOP OF THE AGENDA North Korea Demolishes Only Known Nuclear Test Site North Korea destroyed its nuclear facility at Punggye-ri, beneath the remote Mount Mantap in the country's northeast, in a detonation witnessed by foreign journalists. The Thursday demolition took out three of the site's four tunnels (Korea Times), staff barracks, and military facilities. The six nuclear tests conducted by North Korea since 2006 (Sky) have taken place in the tunnels dug below the mountain range, which saw a 6.3-magnitude earthquake last year as a result of one of them. A South Korean foreign ministry spokesperson hailed the move by the North as introducing the possibility for "complete denuclearization going forward" (Yonhap). ANALYSIS "North Korea took the journalists to the site to report the event, but it did not allow in any experts, making it difficult to assess what, exactly, they had done," Anna Fifield writes for the Washington Post. "Some analysts have also played down the significance of North Korea's decision to shut down the site. They said that after six tests, all conducted in deep tunnels, the site has most likely caved in and become too unstable for another test," Choe Sang-Hun writes for the New York Times. "Dismantling production facilities and disarming will take years, as will convincing steps toward reconciliation. Only then will it become clear whether Kim is willing to give up his weapons," Leon V. Sigal writes for the Arms Control Association. American Debt: Causes, Consequences, and Fixes This CFR symposium is held in memory of longtime CFR Chairman Peter G. Peterson, a passionate advocate for fiscal responsibility. Watch today at 5:30 p.m. (EDT).   PACIFIC RIM U.S. Deepens Foothold in Pacific With Australian Outpost The United States and Australia are upgrading their military outpost (WSJ) in the coastal city of Darwin, which hosts the largest contingent of U.S. marines in the country, to accommodate warplanes and drones. SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA Pakistani Lawmakers Move to Merge Tribal Areas Islamabad hopes that merging the federally administered tribal areas (Dawn) in Pakistan's northwest with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province could prevent armed groups from finding sanctuary in that part of the country (Al Jazeera). The move, already approved by the National Assembly, would reduce the region's representation in parliament. UZBEKISTAN: Envoys from Amnesty International are visiting Uzbekistan for the first time in fourteen years (RFE/RL). The trip comes amid a slew of social and economic reforms by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who took office in late 2016. MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA Pro-Assad Fighters Killed in Likely U.S.-Led Strike The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, said twelve foreign, pro-government fighters were killed (AP) in eastern Syria yesterday in air strikes likely carried out by the U.S.-led coalition there. The Pentagon did not confirm the report. IRAN: Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei listed demands for European countries to salvage the 2015 nuclear agreement (DW), including that they vow not to seek talks on Iran's ballistic missile program and that they challenge U.S. sanctions. The President's Inbox podcast looks at the Trump administration's withdrawal from the nuclear deal. SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA French, Rwandan Leaders Vow Security Cooperation Meeting in Paris, Rwandan President Paul Kagame and his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, pledged to boost cooperation on security issues (VOA) in the Sahel region, the Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. SOUTH AFRICA: President Cyril Ramaphosa said he will donate half of his presidential salary (Bloomberg) to a fund established in honor of anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela. EUROPE Italy Nears Populist Government With New PM After eleven weeks of negotiations between the antiestablishment Five Star Movement and the far-right Northern League, President Sergio Mattarella approved the parties' nomination of law professor Giuseppe Conte (BBC) for prime minister. Together the parties hold a narrow majority in parliament. UKRAINE: The missile that downed a Malaysia Airlines flight over Ukraine in 2014 was fired by a Russian military brigade (DW) from the city of Kursk, according to an international probe. Moscow had denied involvement in the incident. AMERICAS Canada Offers Aid to Rohingya Refugees Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland offered asylum to members of the Rohingya ethnic minority who have fled Myanmar, saying that the situation in their home country is not conducive to their safe return (Dhaka Tribune). She did not specify the number of refugees Canada would take in. CUBA: Luis Posada Carriles, a former CIA operative who sought to overthrow Fidel Castro's regime (NYT), died at age 90 in Miramar, Florida, yesterday. UNITED STATES Trump Orders Probe Into Auto Imports Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross has launched an investigation into auto imports (FT) on national security grounds, introducing the possibility of tariffs that could escalate trade tensions with Europe, Japan, and South Korea. This CFR Backgrounder looks at mechanisms to resolve international trade disputes.         Council on Foreign Relations — 58 East 68th Street — New York, NY 10065 CFR does not share email addresses with third parties. 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From: dailybrief@e.cfr.org

Date: May 24, 2018 at 10:09PM