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| Pentagon Says China Wants to Have 1,500 Nuclear Warheads |
Beijing - China's Ministry of Defense on Tuesday (6/12/2022) rejected a report by the United States (US) Ministry of Defense which accused China of wanting to have 1,500 nuclear warheads by 2035. The U.S. Department of Defense or the Pentagon said in a report last month that China would have a nuclear warhead stockpile by 2035 if it continues at its current pace of nuclear development.
The figure underscores growing US concern about China's intentions to expand its nuclear arsenal, even though the projections do not suggest China is accelerating its already rapid pace of warhead development. China is thought to have around 400 nuclear warheads at this point. In response to the Pentagon report, China's Ministry of Defense said; "The United States is gesticulating and guessing about China's modernization of nuclear forces." "The United States should reflect on its own nuclear policy, especially as it has the largest nuclear arsenal in the world," the ministry continued.
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The ministry further said the United States is vigorously developing and seeking to deploy frontline tactical nuclear weapons, has lowered the threshold for deploying nuclear weapons and is pursuing nuclear proliferation through its security partnerships with Britain and Australia.
"It should be emphasized that China resolutely pursues a nuclear self-defense strategy, always adheres to the policy of not being the first to use nuclear weapons at any time or under any circumstances, and maintains its nuclear power at the lowest level required by national security forces," the ministry added. the.
The United States has a stockpile of about 3,700 nuclear warheads, of which about 1,740 are deployed. That is the calculation of the think tank Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). China's Defense Ministry says the United States is the "biggest trouble maker" when it comes to global security.