Sydney Morning Herald: Finland denies missing ship carries nuclear material
’Finnish authorities dismissed talk Sunday that the Arctic Sea was bearing a cargo of nuclear material, as Russia and NATO joined forces in an international hunt for the missing vessel. Jukka Laaksonen, head of the Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority, said firefighters conducted radiation tests on the ship -- last reported off Cape Verde -- at a port in Finland before it began a voyage full of intrigue. But he dismissed as "stupid rumours" reports in British and Finnish newspapers that the ship
could be carrying a "secret" nuclear cargo that could explain why it was attacked on the Baltic Sea before vanishing. "Some fireman for some reason thought that there might be some radioactivity involved in this shipment and that was a very stupid idea. There was no basis for that," Laaksonen told AFP. A report Saturday by Finnish police that the ship's Helsinki-based operator, Solchart Management, had received a ransom demand for the Arctic Sea raised hopes for the its 15-strong Russian crew.’

AFP: China's nuclear envoy to visit North Korea: report
’SEOUL - China's chief nuclear negotiator is likely to visit North Korea later Monday in an attempt to persuade it to return to six-nation nuclear disarmament talks, South Korean media reports said. "Chances are high that Vice Foreign Minister Wu Dawei will fly to Pyongyang on an Air China flight that departs at 5:20 pm (0920 GMT)," Yonhap news agency quoted a diplomatic source as saying. Wu will try to persuade the North to come back to the talks which also involve South Korea, the United States, Russia and Japan, the source said. Hankyoreh newspaper said Wu would leave Monday and stay a week in the North. South Korean officials were not available for comment.’

Dawn.com: US vows assistance to ease energy crisis
: President Barack Obama's special representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan said here on Sunday that the US administration would cooperate with the country to help it to overcome the energy crisis. 'The US understands Pakistan's energy requirements and needs. Therefore, energy-related issues will be focussed more in Pakistan-US relations in future, as they are moving towards economic ties,' Special US envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke said at a press conference after talks with Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi. According to sources, Pakistan's demand for a civilian nuclear energy agreement with the US or any other country to meet is growing electricity needs was turned down. 'Pakistan is already holding negotiations with France for getting civil nuclear energy, but such a deal with a third country has not been allowed by the US,' the sources said. Ambassador Holbrooke said he had discussed the energy issue with Congress leaders and senior US officials.’

China View: Sun takes the helm at CNNC
’BEIJING, Aug. 17 -- Sun Qin, deputy director of the National Energy Administration (NEA), has been appointed general manager of China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) to replace Kang Rixin, who was removed from his post for "grave violations of discipline", said a notice posted on the corporation's website on Friday. Sun, 56, was the deputy head of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (COSTIND). He also served as the deputy general manager of CNNC for six years before he became the deputy director of the NEA in 2008. "It's not surprising that Sun became the general manager of CNNC," said an insider who preferred to remain anonymous. "He is very familiar with the industry and had similar experience when working in COSTIND." Sun also serves as Party secretary of the corporation, according a statement on its website.’

Haaretz: Ex-nuclear reactor employee: We were forced to drink uranium
’Workers at the nuclear reactor facility in Dimona were made to volunteer to drink uranium in 1998 as part of an experiment, according to a lawsuit filed four months ago in the Be'er Sheva Labor Tribunal by a former worker at the facility. The experiment was allegedly carried out without obtaining written consent from the workers or warning them of risks or side effects, as required by the Declaration of Helsinki on human experimentation. The Israel Atomic Energy Commission said in a statement that the Dimona facility "has the safety and health of its workers as its highest priority." The commission statement added that the amount of uranium the Dimona staffers drank in the experiment (100 mirograms) was less than the amount Be'er Sheva residents drink from their taps in one month.’