Japan nuclear


Nuclear Hawks Take the Reins in Tokyo

, China project manager and senior analyst

February 16, 2018 8:37 AM EDT

Japan’s Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera and Foreign Minister Taro Kono shake hands with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Defense Secretary James Mattis before sitting down for U.S.-Japan security talks.

Donald Trump’s plan for a more muscular US nuclear posture got a ringing endorsement from the increasingly right-wing government of Japan. Not long after the Trump administration released its Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) in early February, Foreign Minister Taro Kono said he “highly appreciates” the new approach to US nuclear weapons policy, including the emphasis on low-yield nuclear options the United States and Japan can rely on to respond to non-nuclear threats.  Read more >

Bookmark and Share

Japan’s Role in the North Korea Nuclear Crisis

, China project manager and senior analyst

January 11, 2018 7:01 AM EDT

Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama (second from left) consults with US President Barack Obama during a 2010 summit on nuclear security.

During a recent trip to Japan I had the opportunity to discuss Japan’s role in the current North Korean nuclear crisis with Yukio Hatoyama, a former prime minister. He led the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) to victory in September 2009, becoming the only Japanese politician to defeat the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) at the polls since end of the Second World War.  Read more >

Bookmark and Share

Increase in Cancer Risk for Japanese Workers Accidentally Exposed to Plutonium

, senior scientist

June 9, 2017 11:47 AM EDT

According to news reports, five workers were accidentally exposed to high levels of radiation at the Oarai nuclear research and development center in Tokai-mura, Japan on June 6th. The Japan Atomic Energy Agency, the operator of the facility, reported that five workers inhaled plutonium and americium that was released from a storage container that the workers had opened. The radioactive materials were contained in two plastic bags, but they had apparently ripped.

We wish to express our sympathy for the victims of this accident. Read more >

Bookmark and Share

Japan Can Accept No First Use

, China project manager and senior analyst

July 31, 2016 6:07 PM EDT

Estimated effects of a single Chinese nuclear warhead targeting the U.S. naval base in Yokosuka in retaliation for U.S. first use of nuclear weapons in a conventional war with China.

Estimated effects of a single Chinese nuclear warhead targeting the U.S. naval base in Yokosuka in retaliation for U.S. first use of nuclear weapons in a conventional war with China.

Most Japanese security professionals currently prefer the United States maintain the option to use nuclear weapons first. But should President Obama declare that the sole purpose of U.S. nuclear weapons is to deter and, if necessary, respond to the use of nuclear weapons by another country, extensive interviews with those same Japanese security professionals indicate they would accept the change. Read more >

Bookmark and Share

The Days of MOX Are Numbered

, senior scientist

October 9, 2015 5:50 PM EDT

On Wednesday, the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee hosted the latest installment in the ongoing debate over the fate of the troubled Mixed Oxide Fuel (MOX) Fabrication project at the Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina. It was apparent that the remaining handful of home-state MOX defenders in Congress are losing steam in the face of one withering report after another documenting the mismanagement and waste plaguing the program. Read more >

Bookmark and Share