Reports from French Polynesia say the French government will launch an epidemiological study of 21,000 nuclear test veterans. Radionz.co.nz The Russian Defense Ministry has started work on upgrading the bases in Tartus and Khmeimim in Syria into permanent military centers. Damascus has agreed to host Russian forces for at least 49 more years. Rt.com Peru's government has ordered the expulsion of two North Korean diplomats after declaring them persona non-grata over Pyongyang's "continued violations" of UN Security Council resolutions with its nuclear program. Aljezeera.com Most of the world’s nations live in nuclear weapon free zones (NWFZs). This does not give them any real protection, since the catastrophic environmental effects of nuclear war would be global, not sparing any nation. However, by supporting the Nuclear Weapons Convention and by becoming members of NWFZ’s, nations can state that they consider nuclear weapons to be morally unacceptable, a view that must soon become worldwide if human civilization is to survive. Globalresearch.ca