The United States on Monday accused China of significantly expanding its nuclear arsenal and reiterated claims that Beijing has conducted secret nuclear tests, calling for China’s inclusion in any future arms control agreements.
Speaking at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, Christopher Yeaw, US Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control and Nonproliferation, said the expiration of the New START treaty earlier this month—the last arms control pact between the United States and Russia—provides an opportunity to negotiate a “better agreement” that includes China.
Yeaw claimed that China has “deliberately and without constraint, massively expanded its nuclear arsenal without transparency or any indication of its intent or end point,” warning that Beijing could achieve parity with the United States and Russia within the next four to five years.
New START, which expired on February 5, limited the United States and Russia to 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads each, though both countries maintain stockpiles exceeding 5,000 nuclear weapons, according to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN).
Yeaw said China is on track to possess fissile material sufficient for more than 1,000 nuclear warheads by 2030.
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He described the expiration of New START as “no longer relevant,” citing alleged Russian violations of the treaty, and accused Moscow of assisting China in expanding its nuclear capabilities.
“The expiration arrived at a fortuitous time,” he said, adding that it would allow the US to pursue a “better agreement” toward reducing nuclear weapons globally.
Yeaw also reinforced US allegations that China carried out a low-yield nuclear test in 2020 and may be preparing for further tests with larger yields.
According to the US, data collected in Kazakhstan indicate that China conducted a 2.75-magnitude underground explosion at Lop Nur on June 22, 2020, estimated at a 10-tonne nuclear yield or five tonnes conventional equivalent.
China has denied the allegations, calling them “outright lies” and suggesting they are intended to justify the US resuming nuclear testing. The United States last conducted a nuclear test in 1992.
The expiration of New START marks the first time in decades that no treaty limits exist on the world’s largest nuclear arsenals, raising concerns about a potential new arms race.
Yeaw emphasized that the United States remains committed to arms control and reducing nuclear weapons, stating: “The treaty’s expiration does not mean the United States is walking away from or ignoring arms control. Quite the opposite is true.”