Digests and Blog

Last week, a retired Indian defense scientist, K. Santhanam, claimed 10 years after the fact, that one of India's nuclear tests in 1998 was a fizzle. He said in a press interview that the yield in the thermonuclear device test was much lower than what was claimed. Mr. Santhanam, who only cited unspecified seismic measurements and expert opinion from world over, said that due to the failed test, India should not sign the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT).The Indian government has strongly refuted Santhanam's charges.Principal Scientific Adviser R. Chidambaram told The Hindu that those…

In recent public statements and congressional hearings, Obama administration officials have indicated that they will reverse Bush-era policies on a number of major arms control issues. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and other Obama appointees have said that they will actively pursue ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) as well as a new strategic arms agreement with Russia and have revised the U.S. approach to negotiations on a treaty banning the production of fissile material for use in nuclear weapons.The statements made clear that the new administration…