Issue No. 962, 06 December 2011 Articles & Other Documents: Featured Article: Questions Swirl around $6 Billion Nuclear Lab 1. Study Says 6 in 10 Israelis Want Middle East Nuclear Free Zone 2. China Must Protect Iran Even with WWIII 3. Mysterious Blasts, Slayings Suggest Covert Efforts in Iran 4. Iran Makes New Claim It Downed U.S. Drone 5. Explosion Seen as Big Setback to Iran’s Missile Program 6. Saudi May Join Nuclear Arms Race: Ex-Spy Chief 7. Iran Becoming a Pariah State, Says US Official 8. UAE Leader: Israel would Destroy Iran if Attacked 9. US Envoys on N. Korea to Head to Asia 10. North Korea Seen Advancing Work on ICBM Capable of Reaching U.S. 11. Korea to Purchase 170 Stealth Cruise Missiles Next Year 12. Russian Navy to Receive 1st Graney Class Attack Sub by End of 2012 13. Russia to Start Construction of Borey-A Class Nuclear Subs in 2012 14. Medvedev ‘Drops a Bomb’ on Missile Defense 15. U.S. Official Says Missile-Defense Shield Will Move Forward 16. Questions Swirl around $6 Billion Nuclear Lab 17. Russia Will Not Stop U.S. Missile Defense Plans, Envoy Says 18. Power to Homes, Businesses Faces Cybersecurity Threat, MIT Finds 19. Armageddon Super Virus Recipe: Keep Secret or Publish? 20. Panetta: Strikes Will only 'Delay' Iranian Nukes 21. Containing a Dangerous Enemy 22. A Nuclear-Free Middle East Starts at Home 23. Syria's Chemical Weapons an Opaque but Alarming Risk 24. What Happens the Day After Iran Gets the Bomb? 25. Make No Mistake, the Iranians Will Have Their Nuclear Way Welcome to the CPC Outreach Journal. As part of USAF Counterproliferation Center’s mission to counter weapons of mass destruction through education and research, we’re providing our government and civilian community a source for timely counterproliferation information. This information includes articles, papers and other documents addressing issues pertinent to US military response options for dealing with chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) threats and countermeasures. It’s our hope this information resource will help enhance your counterproliferation issue awareness. Established in 1998, the USAF/CPC provides education and research to present and future leaders of the Air Force, as well as to members of other branches of the armed services and Department of Defense. Our purpose is to help those agencies better prepare to counter the threat from weapons of mass destruction. Please feel free to visit our web site at http://cpc.au.af.mil/ for in-depth information and specific points of contact. The following articles, papers or documents do not necessarily reflect official endorsement of the United States Air Force, Department of Defense, or other US government agencies. Reproduction for private use or commercial gain is subject to original copyright restrictions. All rights are reserved. Issue No. 962, 06 December 2011 The following articles, papers or documents do not necessarily reflect official endorsement of the United States Air Force, Department of Defense, or other US government agencies. Reproduction for private use or commercial gain is subject to original copyright restrictions. All rights are reserved. United States Air Force Counterproliferation Research & Education | Maxwell AFB, Montgomery AL Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7530 DigitalJournal.com Study Says 6 in 10 Israelis Want Middle East Nuclear Free Zone By John Thomas Didymus December 3, 2011 Tel Aviv - A new poll says that faced with possibility of Iran acquiring nuclear weapons, more Israelis are supporting the idea of a nuclear free Middle East zone. According to the poll, nearly two-thirds of Israelis favor a nuclear free zone in the Middle East. The University of Maryland research poll was joint project of the Anwar Sadat Chair at the University of Maryland and the Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA). PIPA is a joint program of the Center on Policy Attitudes and the Center on International Security Studies at Maryland. The poll, according to PhysOrg.com, showed that 64 percent of Israeli Jews favored establishing a nuclear free zone in the Middle East even if this means that Israel and Iran would have to forgo having nuclear weapons. Fewer than 43 percent supported an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities. The poll also found that 90 percent of Israelis believe it is likely Iran will acquire nuclear weapons. When respondents were asked which they preferred, a Middle East zone in which both Israel and Iran have nuclear weapons or one in which neither have nuclear weapons, 65 percent responded they would prefer that neither have nuclear weapons. Only 19 percent of respondents said they would prefer both Israel and Iran to have nuclear weapons. University of Maryland's Anwar Sadat professor for Peace and Development Shibley Telhami, said: "I find the results surprising given the long held assumption that the Israeli public is not prepared to even discuss the nuclear issue given their deep seated sense of insecurity." Steven Kull, director of PIPA, added "If Israel and Iran were to indicate a readiness to join a process toward turning the Middle East into a nuclear free zone this would be a major game changer in negotiations on Iran's nuclear program." The researchers found that Israeli Jews were in support of a long term goal of eliminating nuclear weapons in the region. They were in support of a proposal for Iran and Israel to make their nuclear programs mutually transparent. 60 percent of respondents favored a proposal to have Israel, Iran and all countries in the region "agree to have a system of full international inspection of all facilities where nuclear components could be built and maintained." The researchers believe their research findings are very relevant to any future negotiations with Iran. The poll results follow Iran's recent boycott of an Israel-Arab meeting on nuclear-free Middle East. Haaretz Daily reports Iran said it boycotted the meeting because it was convinced that IAEA director general Yukiya Amano, was biased in favor of the West. Iran also accused the IAEA of failing to address the issue of Israel's alleged atomic arsenal. The meeting was planned to pave way for an international conference next year to address the issue of freeing the Middle East of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction. Haaretz Daily reports Israel is the only Middle East country outside the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Israel is believed to have the Middle East's only nuclear arsenal, but the country has never confirmed or denied the allegation. Issue No. 962, 06 December 2011 United States Air Force Counterproliferation Research & Education | Maxwell AFB, Montgomery AL Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7530 Israel has said it would join the treaty and agree not to have nuclear weapons only if there is a comprehensive Middle East peace with Arab states and Iran. http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/315494 (Return to Articles and Documents List) Press TV – Iran China Must Protect Iran Even with WWIII Sunday, December 04, 2011 A professor from the Chinese National Defense University says if Iran is attacked, China will not hesitate to protect the Islamic Republic even by launching the Third World War. Major General Zhang Zhaozhong said, "China will not hesitate to protect Iran even with a third World War." The United States and Israel have repeatedly threatened Tehran with the "option" of a military strike, based on the allegation that Iran's nuclear program may consist of a covert military agenda. Iran has refuted the allegations, saying that as a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and a member of the IAEA, it has the right to develop and acquire nuclear technology for peaceful purposes. Over the past weeks, Israel has renewed its aggressive rhetoric against Iran. On November 21, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak warned that "time has come" to deal with Iran. Israeli President Shimon Peres also threatened on November 6 that an attack against Iran is becoming "more and more likely." Iranian officials have promised a crushing response to any military strike against the country, warning that any such measure could result in a war that would spread beyond the Middle East. http://presstv.com/detail/213760.html (Return to Articles and Documents List) Los Angeles Times Mysterious Blasts, Slayings Suggest Covert Efforts in Iran Attacks targeting nuclear scientists and sites lead some observers to believe that the U.S. and Israel are trying to derail Iran's programs. By Ken Dilanian, Los Angeles Times December 4, 2011 Reporting from Washington — At an Iranian military base 30 miles west of Tehran, engineers were working on weapons that the armed forces chief of staff had boasted could give Israel a "strong punch in the mouth." But then a huge explosion ripped through the Revolutionary Guard Corps base on Nov. 12, leveling most of the buildings. Government officials said 17 people were killed, including a founder of Iran's ballistic missile program, Gen. Hassan Tehrani Moghaddam. Iranian officials called the blast an accident. Perhaps it was. Decades of international sanctions have left Iran struggling to obtain technology and spare parts for military programs and commercial industries, leading in some cases to dangerous working conditions. However, many former U.S. intelligence officials and Iran experts believe that the explosion — the most destructive of at least two dozen unexplained blasts in the last two years — was part of a covert effort by the U.S., Issue No. 962, 06 December 2011 United States Air Force Counterproliferation Research & Education | Maxwell AFB, Montgomery AL Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7530 Israel and others to disable Iran's nuclear and missile programs.