NAPSNet 05 January 2012

Recommended Citation

"NAPSNet 05 January 2012", NAPSNet Weekly Report, January 05, 2012, https://nautilus.org/napsnet/napsnet-weekly/napsnet-05-january-2012/

DETERRENCE: A proposal for a nuclear weapons-free zone in northeast Asia, Morton Halperin (3 January 2012)

Halperin argues that the parties to the Six-Party talks should negotiate a comprehensive treaty that ends the Korean War, establish a security organization for the region, commit all parties to normalization of relations with no hostile intent, and establish a nuclear weapons-free zone. Only such an approach will reverse North Korea’s nuclear program.

DPRK: Joint New Year editorial, Korean Central News Agency (1 January 2012)

North Korea’s joint New Years editorial emphasized that the state was united behind Kim Jong-Un and the continuity between his leadership and that of Kim Jong-Il and Kim Il-Sung. The editorial avoided controversial statements on economic reform and state control. The editorial omitted the North’s commitment to denuclearization, which was noted in previous editorials, but discussed Kim Jong-Il’s visits to China and Russia last year.

CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION: Climate uncertainties and their discontents: Increasing the impact of assessments on public understanding of climate risks and choices, Brenda Ekwurzel, Peter C. Frumhoff & James J. McCarthy, Climatic Change, pp. 791-802 (2011) [PDF, 515 KB]

Several prominent climate assessments with high relevance to US public understanding of climate science have largely failed to reach US public audiences, leaving a vacuum to be filled by less authoritative voices. The paper proposes ways in which the IPCC and other climate assessment institutions might improve their public reach in the United States.

ENERGY SECURITY: Fukushima and the inevitability of accidents, Charles Perrow, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (1 December 2011)

The combination of unforseen events, regulatory failure, and inept response that brought about March 2011 Fukushima accident is common to most recent industrial disasters. “Normal” accidents are inevitable in many complex modern systems, and can result in “unpredictable, cascading” disasters. The possibility of such accidents cannot be eliminated; perhaps some industrial systems with catastrophic potential “should not be allowed to exist.”

GOVERNANCE AND CIVIL SOCIETY: Opposition parties abundant in general election candidates, Lee Tae-hee, The Hankyoreh (26 December 2011)

ROK opposition parties are gaining traction after the merger of 3 opposition parties to form the Unified Democratic Party and the increasing unpopularity of the ruling GNP, with a poll showing 61% of voters planning to vote against incumbents. In Japan, nine Lower House members left the ruling DPJ to create the new Kizuna party, protesting Prime Minister Noda’s consumption tax plan and the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement.

Note: We regret that the Austral Security section is not included in this week’s NAPSNet report and apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

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