BEIJING: China known as on Washington and Moscow on Tuesday (Jan 28) to “additional cut back” their nuclear arsenals as a precondition for its participation in potential disarmament talks known as for by US President Donald Trump.
Trump mentioned in a video tackle to the World Financial Discussion board in Davos, Switzerland final week that “we would wish to see denuclearisation”, and reiterated his want for three-way talks with Russia and China.
The day after Trump’s Davos tackle, Russia mentioned it needed to renew bilateral nuclear disarmament talks “as quickly as doable”, and that “the ball is within the People’ courtroom”.
The previous Chilly Struggle rivals possess virtually 90 per cent of the world’s nuclear weapons between them, however Moscow pulled out of the last remaining arms control agreement with Washington in 2023 amid a pointy deterioration in relations.
“The 2 nuclear powers with the most important nuclear arsenals ought to rigorously fulfil their particular … tasks for nuclear disarmament,” the Chinese language overseas ministry mentioned in a press release despatched to AFP on Tuesday.
They have to “additional considerably cut back their nuclear arsenals, in order to create the mandatory circumstances for different nuclear-weapon states to hitch the disarmament course of”, it mentioned.
Beijing says it favours disarmament in precept however has recurrently rejected Washington’s invites to hitch US-Russian talks on lowering their nuclear arsenals.
In line with 2024 estimates by the Stockholm Worldwide Peace Analysis Institute (SIPRI), the US has 3,708 nuclear warheads and Russia 4,380, excluding retired warheads.
China had 500, 90 greater than in 2023. Behind them had been France (290) and the UK (225).
Beijing reiterated on Tuesday that its arsenal was solely for “self-defence” and that it maintained its nuclear forces “on the minimal stage required for nationwide safety”.
