The US has accused China of a massive and opaque nuclear expansion, demanding its inclusion in any future arms control treaty as the last major pact with Russia lapses.
GENEVA: The United States has accused China of dramatically and opaquely expanding its nuclear arsenal while rejecting calls to join future arms control negotiations.
Washington’s assistant secretary of state for arms control, Christopher Yeaw, told the Conference on Disarmament that the recent lapse of the New START treaty with Russia presented an opportunity for a “better agreement” that must include Beijing.
Yeaw charged that China had “deliberately and without constraint, massively expanded its nuclear arsenal without transparency or any indication of China’s intent or end point”.
He stated that Beijing is on track to possess the fissile material necessary for more than 1,000 nuclear warheads by 2030, a number fast approaching the 1,550 deployed warheads the now-expired New START treaty restricted the US and Russia to.
“We believe China may achieve parity within the next four or five years,” Yeaw added, without elaborating on what he meant by parity.
The official also doubled down on longstanding US claims that China has been conducting secret nuclear tests, allegations Beijing has publicly denied.
Yeaw welcomed the expiration of New START earlier this month, insisting its numerical limits were “no longer relevant” given Russia’s alleged violations of the pact and the need to account for China’s build-up.
“The treaty’s expiration and the absence of any nuclear arms control treaty right now does not mean the United States is walking away from or ignoring arms control,” he said, adding that “quite the opposite is true”.
He argued the lapse arrived at a “fortuitous time” to allow President Donald Trump to push towards the “ultimate goal of a better agreement” for a world with fewer nuclear weapons.
Yeaw further accused Moscow of helping “boost Beijing’s capacity to increase its arsenal size,” as the expiration of New START marks the first time in decades with no treaty curbing the planet’s most destructive weapons.
China has publicly and repeatedly rejected calls to enter negotiations on a new three-way arms control treaty with the US and Russia.
The Sun Malaysia