The escalating tension between Israel and Iran over the latter's nuclear program has been at the center of many foreign policy debates and diplomatic talks over the past decade. Proponents of an Israeli strike say it's needed for to preserve Israel's national security while detractors say such an attack would precipitate World War III. 

The International Atomic Energy Agency is set to release a report that accuses Iran of using foreign aid to get to fund its nuclear weapons capability. Israel's prime minister and president have already warned that they are taking this very seriously, even threatening military intervention. There is also talk of a preemptive strike by the Israelis to confront Iran's nuclear weapons.

The State Department has announced that the United States will resume nuclear talks with North Korea next week for the first time since 2005. The talks are welcomed by Kim Jong-il, who even hinted at the possibility of resuming six-party talks to end his country’s nuclear program. Separate negotiations currently taking place in Bangkok will also touch on the remains of American soldiers still missing in action from the Korean War. Almost 8,000 men are still missing from that conflict, and the remains of nearly 5,500 are thought to be in North Korea.

Twenty-five years ago today, disaster rocked Ukraine when a systems test at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant led to a series of explosions, releasing nuclear fallout into the atmosphere. It was the beginning of a months-long struggle by Soviet authorities to contain the spread of deadly radiation. Thousands of workers joined this fight. Sergei Belyakov was one of them. He’s the author of a forthcoming book about his experience called “The Liquidator.”

The situation at the Fukushima Power Plant in Japan continues to worsen. U.S. Media is reporting that water levels are dropping in more than one of the six reactors at the plant, leaving nuclear fuel rods exposed. The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission has warned that Japanese regulators may be downplaying the risk of radiation levels at the plant; and the commission has advised that Americans evacuate the area within 30 miles of Fukushima.

This tragedy and disaster in Japan is framed by a moment in technological history. The tsunami waves were recorded from helicopters with cameras, images of the earth shaking office buildings and street signs and the heart wrenching images of the devastation are sweeping the world. Technology has also enabled numerous tools and datasets that have become another way of following what is happening in Japan. Google has set up a crisis response page to help those affected by the crisis. Prem Ramaswami, product manager with Google.org's crisis response team explains what they have done. Ramaswami says that crisis mapping is key in getting help to those who need it.

One year ago, President Obama announced that the federal government would guarantee $8 billion in new federal loans to build two nuclear reactors in Georgia. The recession-hit town of Waynesboro, Georgia was to benefit from the construction, as new jobs were created. But as Japan's nuclear disaster continues to unfold, some of those who live near the 104 nuclear reactors scattered throughout the United States are growing nervous, while others say there's nothing to fear.

Nuclear reactors continue to fail at power plants in Japan and there is a risk of possible nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, with 80,000 people being evacuated from around the plant. The plant was built to withstand a tsunami and earthquake, with a system of plans to safeguard from a meltdown; however, the situation is a desperate one as fire engines are pumping sea water to cool the reactors.

The Japanese government has called a nuclear power emergency and evacuated nearly 200,000 people from the area surrounding two nuclear reactors as excessive radiation levels have been reported in the wake of a breakdown following Friday's earthquake. Japan has 55 reactors, which provide about one third of its total electricity, making it the world's third largest atomic energy user. This is the third time an earthquake has led to an accident at one of the country's nuclear plants in the past five years.

The world is witnessing first-hand the potential dangers of nuclear energy, as Japan faces the threat of a nuclear meltdown at several power plants, including the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, just 140 miles north of Tokyo. An explosion rocked the plant in the following Friday's earthquake. President Obama has been pushing nuclear energy as part of his new and clean energy policy, but the current events in Japan could be a setback. How will the disaster affect the industry?

The world has seen a recent increase in shipments, by land and sea, of nuclear materials to more secure harbors. This increase comes on the heels of President Obama's pledge to secure all the world's nuclear material within four years and the ratification of the New Start Treaty. Is the securing of these nuclear materials on schedule with the President's four-year plan?

Just as the START treaty's approval seems to look dubious, North Korea is upping the nuclear ante by showing off its sparkling new enrichment facility. 

When President Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009, it was understood he was given the honor on speculation — part of a hope by many around the world that the new American president would reduce the threat of global nuclear war. Specifically, many hoped that President Obama could bring his stated plan to fruition: to help eradicate all nuclear weapons. The President himself admitted it may not happen in his lifetime, but a year after accepting his Nobel Prize, is the world any closer to freedom from nuclear weapons?

Reclusive North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has promoted his youngest son, Kim Jong-un, to the rank of general, just one day before a rare meeting of North Korea's ruling Workers Party. The move added to speculation that Kim Jong-un will take over for his ailing father in the future. 

It's a simple question with an infinitely complicated answer: what happens if Iran is able to build a nuclear weapon?

Russia is expected to deliver low-enriched uranium to Tehran to bring the Bushehr reactor, Iran's first nuclear power station, online. And the U.S., Israel and other nations are reportedly on alert, as hawks are calling for the bombing the reactor before the fuel is loaded into it.

The last convoy of U.S. combat troops left Iraq last night under cover of darkness. 440 troops of the 4/2 Stryker Brigade crossed into Kuwait, leaving behind another 56,000 U.S. service members in support and training roles. 6,000 are scheduled to withdraw by September 1st; another 50,000 will remain behind into 2011. 

Ambassador Hans Blix, former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, led a team of UN inspectors into Iraq before the 2003 invasion, searching for weapons of mass destruction. They found none, but the invasion went ahead as planned. 

Read a full transcript.

North and South Korea continued to trade diplomatic blows on Tuesday, with South Korea re-designating the North their "principal enemy," a term that Seoul used to use for Pyonyang, but then retired in 2004. North Korea retaliated by cutting ties with the South, calling southern officials "puppet authorities." Brian Myers, professor of international studies at Dongseo University in South Korea, joins us from the ground with a look at the latest news.

Iran has agreed to a new confidence-building deal over its nuclear program. The country signed an agreement with Turkey and Brazil, in which a large part of Iran's enriched uranium will be shipped to Turkey in return for fuel for a Tehran research reactor.

• FINANCIAL TAKEOUT: What’s the difference between a Washington Lobbyist and a former congressional aide? It sounds like the setup to a bad joke, but in fact, Louise Story, The New York Times Wall Street and finance reporter, says that the question is actually very valid and becoming very hard to answer.
• WASHINGTON TAKEOUT: With the nuclear summit winding down, The Takeaway's Washington correspondent, Todd Zwillich, looks at the future of the START treaty, which President Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed last week. The treaty aims to significantly decrease the amount of nuclear weapons between the two countries, but it looks like it's going to be a long and slow journey for START treaty in Congress.

President Obama's nuclear security summit, held in Washington, D.C. and hosting 46 world leaders, wrapped up last night with a request from the president. He called on all the nations present to cooperate in keeping nuclear material out of the hands of terrorists.