US Accuses China of Rapid Nuclear Arsenal Expansion

The United States has accused China of rapidly increasing its nuclear weapons stockpile and conducting secret nuclear tests. Washington has once again urged Beijing to join any future nuclear arms control agreement.

The statement came after the expiration of the New START treaty on February 5. This treaty was the last major nuclear arms control agreement between the United States and Russia. It limited both countries to 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads each.

Speaking at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, US Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control and Nonproliferation Christopher Yeaw said the treaty had serious flaws. He claimed its biggest weakness was that it did not consider China’s fast and opaque nuclear expansion.

Yeaw alleged that China has “massively expanded” its nuclear arsenal without transparency and without clearly stating its long-term goals. He said the US believes China could reach nuclear parity with the United States and Russia within the next four to five years. However, he did not clarify whether he meant total warheads or deployed weapons.

According to the Nobel Peace Prize-winning group International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, both the US and Russia currently possess more than 5,000 nuclear weapons each. While China has fewer weapons, Washington claims Beijing is quickly increasing its stockpile.

Yeaw also stated that China is on track to have enough fissile material to produce more than 1,000 nuclear warheads by 2030.

China has repeatedly rejected US calls to join a three-way arms control treaty involving Washington, Beijing, and Moscow. The US argues that any future agreement must include China.

The expiration of New START has raised global concerns about a possible new nuclear arms race. For the first time in decades, there is no active treaty limiting the deployment of the world’s most powerful weapons.

Despite this, Yeaw said the US sees the treaty’s expiration as an opportunity. He claimed the agreement’s limits were “no longer relevant,” accusing Russia of violating its terms and helping China strengthen its nuclear capabilities.

Yeaw said US President Donald Trump aims to secure a “better agreement” that includes China and leads to fewer nuclear weapons globally.

He stressed that the absence of a treaty does not mean the United States is stepping away from arms control. Instead, Washington says it is working toward a stronger and more inclusive nuclear agreement in the future.