Iran
Iran and the European Union held “constructive” talks on Wednesday night over Tehran’s controversial nuclear programme, but each side gave a cautious assessment of the progress made. The talks, held in Ankara at the invitation of the Turkish government, were the most serious attempt for seven months to tackle the international deadlock over Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
FT 26th April 2007
Terror
Every year thousands of commercial devices containing radioactive material are lost, abandoned or stolen. From oil well measuring gauges to industrial food sterilisers, there is a long list of “sources” that could be used to construct a dirty bomb which, when detonated, would spread dangerous radioactive material over a wide area. In the US an average of 168 sources were lost and never recovered every year from 1996-2001. Europe lost 70 per year. Thousands are reported missing in the former Soviet Union. The world is literally littered with them. Of those missing in the US, 20% were classified as risky, meaning the radioisotope was of a type that could be used to make a dirty bomb.
Guardian 26th April 2007
New nukes
Alastair Darling wants to be in a position to give new reactors the go-ahead by the end of the year.
Daily Mail 26th April 2007