China rejects US call for trilateral nuclear disarmament talks

12:45

By: Azzat Manal

China rejects US call for trilateral nuclear disarmament talks

China has rejected a US proposal for Beijing to participate in nuclear disarmament negotiations alongside Washington and Moscow, describing the request as unfair and unrealistic under current circumstances. The response highlights persistent differences between the major powers over how to address nuclear weapons and whether countries with arsenals of different sizes should be involved in the same negotiations.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning delivered Beijing’s position during a press briefing on Friday, responding to recent remarks by US President Donald Trump. She argued that the American demand lacked a reasonable basis at this stage, indicating that China does not consider the proposed format appropriate for current nuclear disarmament discussions.

Trump recently told Newsmax that his administration was holding discussions with Russia and China on reducing nuclear arsenals. He expressed hope that the three countries could reach an agreement to limit their stockpiles, presenting arms control as an opportunity to reduce the risks associated with the world’s most powerful weapons.

The US president also suggested that China could bring its nuclear arsenal closer in size to those of the United States and Russia within five or six years. His comments reflected Washington’s concerns about the future development of China’s nuclear capabilities and the potential implications for the global strategic balance.

Beijing’s response underscores a fundamental disagreement over the conditions for negotiations. China has maintained that its nuclear capabilities remain significantly smaller than those of the United States and Russia, which possess the world’s largest nuclear stockpiles. From Beijing’s perspective, requiring all three countries to participate under the same framework without accounting for these differences would not provide an equitable basis for negotiations.

Nuclear arms control has become increasingly complicated as strategic competition intensifies and existing agreements face uncertainty. The United States and Russia have historically played the central role in bilateral efforts to limit their nuclear arsenals, while China’s expanding military capabilities have prompted growing calls from Washington for a broader framework involving Beijing.

Any trilateral agreement would require substantial diplomatic coordination, agreement on the scope of reductions and mechanisms for verification. Differences over transparency, national security priorities and the balance of nuclear capabilities could also complicate progress. For now, the public exchange between Washington and Beijing indicates that the two sides remain divided over the conditions under which China should join formal disarmament negotiations.