The Pentagon is concerned about China’s nuclear ambitions

China is expected to at least double its nuclear warheads over the next decade of just over 200 now and will soon be able to carry out nuclear strikes on land, air and sea. called the “nuclear trio,” the Pentagon said Tuesday.

This information comes as tensions between the United States and China rise and as Washington seeks to get Beijing to join the nuclear weapons treaty between the United States and Russia.

In its annual report to the National Assembly on the Chinese military, the Pentagon said that China had a nuclear warhead count of around 200, the first time the US military had disclosed this number.

The Pentagon said it predicts the possibility of China increasing the number of warheads based on factors including that Beijing has enough raw materials to double its arsenal of nuclear weapons without the need to produce fission materials. new.

The Pentagon’s estimates match the Defense Intelligence Agency’s analysis.

Chad Sbragia, the deputy undersecretary for China in the US Department of Defense, told reporters: “We are definitely concerned about the numbers … but these are in the path of China’s nuclear development.”

Earlier this year, the Global Times of the Communist Party of China said Beijing needed to increase the number of nuclear warheads to 1,000 in a relatively short time.

Sbragia said China is also close to the ‘nuclear trilogy’, showing that China is moving further than previously revealed. China operates only two of these three capabilities, but is developing an air-launched ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear weapon.

The report claims that in October 2019, China announced the H-6N bomber, its first nuclear-capable aerial refueling bomber.

Washington has repeatedly called on China to initiate trilateral talks to extend New START, a nuclear weapons treaty between the United States and Russia that expires in February.

China has said it is not interested in entering the negotiations, as the United States’ nuclear arsenal is about 20 times larger than China’s.

In July, a senior Chinese diplomat said Beijing would be “delighted” to enter into trilateral arms control talks, but only if the United States was willing to reduce its nuclear arsenal. its level is below the level of China.

China’s growing nuclear arsenal should not be used as an excuse for the United States and Russia not to renew the New START, Kingston Reif, Director of Disarmament Policy and Threat Reduction. from the advocacy group of the Arms Control Association, he said.

“It reinforces the importance of the New START expansion and the absurdity of the extension terms and China’s involvement in arms control,” Reif added.

Tensions have simmered between China and the United States for months. Washington has questioned how China handled the new corona virus outbreak and how it moves to limit freedoms in Hong Kong. The situation worsened when President Donald Trump ran for re-election in November.

Another source of stress is Taiwan. China has stepped up military activity around Taiwan, where Beijing claims it is under its sovereignty, and has brought in planes and warships to exercise near Taiwan.

The Pentagon report, based on data from 2019, says the Chinese military continues to “increase its readiness” to prevent Taiwan’s independence and invade if necessary.