U.S. Delegation Holds Back-to-Back Talks with Russia and China in Bid for New Trilateral Nuclear Treaty

U.S.: "China Has Sufficient Nuclear Warhead Production Capability"
China: "Far Less Capable Than the U.S.... Participation in Talks Is Unreasonable"

The U.S. delegation is scheduled to meet back-to-back with Russian and Chinese delegations in Geneva, Switzerland, this week to discuss nuclear arms reduction, but difficulties are expected as China has refused to take part.

Donald Trump, President of the United States, clenched his fist after delivering the leaders' special address at the "2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit" held at the Gyeongbuk Gyeongju Arts Center on October 29 last year. The photo is unrelated to the article. Photo by Kang Jinhyeong

Quoting a U.S. State Department official, Bloomberg reported that the U.S. delegation dispatched to the United Nations (UN) Conference on Disarmament met with Russian officials on the 23rd (local time), and will hold talks with the Chinese delegation the following day, on the 24th.

This move comes as part of the Donald Trump administration's efforts to conclude a new trilateral nuclear treaty that includes China, following the expiration of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), the last remaining nuclear arms control mechanism between the United States and Russia. President Trump and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio have previously stated that China must be included in any future nuclear negotiations.

China, however, has so far refused to join the agreement. A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington, D.C., did not respond to a request for comment on the planned meetings between the United States and Russia.

Christopher Yeaw, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control, speaking in Geneva the previous day, referred to China's nuclear buildup and called on Beijing to come to the negotiating table. He criticized that, "Contrary to its claims, China has been deliberately and unconstrainedly expanding its nuclear weapons stockpile on a massive scale."

According to U.S. estimates, China possessed only about 200 nuclear weapons at the time the New START treaty was signed in 2010. However, the United States now assesses that China could secure enough fissile material to produce more than 1,000 nuclear warheads by 2030.

In this regard, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said at a briefing earlier this month that China's nuclear forces remain far smaller than those of the United States. "At this stage, it is neither fair nor reasonable to demand that China participate in nuclear disarmament negotiations," he said.