An important event has taken place in US-China relations. From 27 to 29 August this year, Jacob Sullivan, the U.S. National Security Advisor, paid a visit to China. This political figure is the second most responsible person in this sphere of state activity. Therefore, it is not surprising that this event has also become significant for the current stage of development of the “Great World Game”.

Over the years, the AUKUS and Quad military blocs, as any reasonable observer will have noted, have become sources of militarization in the Asia-Pacific region. However, one of the risks associated with these and other US regional alliances, and one which has so far been overlooked, is the potential, in the near future, for nuclear proliferation and the spread of dual-use technologies in this part of the world.

Russia’s Special Military Operation in Ukraine started in February 2022, when the Ukrainians suspended all communication channels with their Russian counterparts. Before that, Ukraine made blatant violations of all the mutual understandings between Russia and the West, including the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). It is to be remembered here that after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the West and the Russian Federation mutually agreed that the NATO will not expand its borders. The then U.S. Secretary of State James Baker made it clear to the Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev that NATO has no desire of expansion, and it will move “not one inch eastward.”

On June 13, 2024, Russia and China signed a historic deal by signing a contract to jointly build 4 VVER-1200 third-generation nuclear reactors. The China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) and Russia’s Rosatom (or the State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom) signed the agreements. Both countries are planning to construct Xudabao Nuclear Power Plant and Tianwan Nuclear Power Plant in China. Apparently, 2 VVER-1200 will be installed in each of the power plants generating almost 4800 Mega Watts of power.

The first thing to note is the launch on April 2, when they tested the hypersonic glider again (the previous launch of such a missile was Jan. 14) by firing a long-range heavy solid-propellant missile with a hypersonic warhead on a shortened trajectory. Hypersonic missiles fly at speeds of at least Mach 5 – five times the speed of sound – and are designed to be maneuverable on unpredictable flight paths and fly at low altitudes. At Mach 5 and above, such a missile can cover the 195-kilometer distance between Pyongyang and Seoul…

Considering the ticking nuclear clock, which currently sits at 90 seconds to midnight, in light of all the recent rhetoric and recriminations, you can only think a Mad Professor who is dead set on a Nuclear Holocaust to speed up the ticking time clock to doomsday is alive and well. That is exactly what appears to be happening in Poland, Europe and the collective West.  And to put it lightly, this is very troublesome news … and that is just for starters!

With the ever-escalating tensions throughout the world, analysts, observers, and political analysts are anxious about the outbreak of an all-out war around the world. Talks about the possibility of the World War 3 are rife among the people. The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientist has also announced that the hand of the doomsday clock is closest ever to a global apocalypse – 90 seconds to midnight, amidst rising AI and nuclear threats…

On March 28, 2024, Russia vetoed the extension of the mandate of the UN panel of experts to monitor the sanctions against the DPRK until April 30, 2025. This is important, because according to the established procedure, the decision to extend the term of office of the so-called 1718 Sanctions Committee must be made by April 30, otherwise it will be unable to continue with its activities…

Between 17 and 21 March, Wang Yi, a member of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party and China’s Foreign Minister, visited New Zealand and Australia (for the first time since 2017) at the invitation of his counterparts, Winston Peters and Penny Wong. And while the motivation for Wang Yi’s visit to the first of these countries contained its own intrigue, the main component of the entire tour was undoubtedly related to the second half…

New revelations are shedding more light on the CIA and Massad’s involvement in the Obama administration’s sabotage of the Iranian nuclear program. Dutch media have identified the man who played a crucial role in the U.S.-Israeli operation to disrupt Iran’s nuclear program in 2007. Given the Biden administration’s threat diplomacy and fearmongering aimed at Iran on Israel’s behalf recently, we should expect even more colorful espionage that targets the Iranians. In addition, the Dutch espionage revelations provide circumstantial evidence…

Building on the tensions of early 2024, North Korea began “missile season.” The KCNA reported that on the afternoon of January 14, DPRK’s General Administration of Rocket Science conducted a test launch of a medium-range solid-fuel ballistic missile with a hypersonic maneuverable guided warhead. The successful launch was aimed at “confirming the characteristics of the gliding and maneuvering flight of a hypersonic maneuverable guided warhead of medium-long range and the reliability of the new multi-stage super-powered solid rocket motors,” had no impact on the security…

This is the second part of the digest on inter-Korean tensions, dedicated to the DPRK actions. See the previous article to learn what the United States and the Republic of Korea did during the same period. Early in the morning on September 2, 2023, “a missile launch exercise was conducted to simulate a tactical nuclear attack to warn enemies of an actual nuclear war danger.” The launch came two days after the US and the ROK completed their 11-day Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise…