China Refuses to Join US-Russia Nuclear Talks

TDT | Manama

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China has said it will not take part in nuclear disarmament talks with the United States and Russia, despite US President Donald Trump expressing hope to include Beijing in such negotiations.

Trump, speaking at the White House on Monday, emphasized the importance of global denuclearization. “We can’t let nuclear weapons proliferate. We have to stop nuclear weapons,” he said, adding that he believed both Russia and China would be willing to work toward disarmament.

The United States and Russia, former Cold War rivals, together hold nearly 90% of the world’s nuclear weapons. However, Russia withdrew from the last major arms control agreement with Washington in 2023.

Responding to Trump’s comments, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said on Wednesday that expecting China to join trilateral nuclear talks “is neither reasonable nor realistic.” He stressed that China and the United States are not comparable in terms of nuclear capabilities and that countries with the largest arsenals should take the lead in disarmament.

China has repeatedly stated that it supports nuclear disarmament in principle but has declined past US invitations to join US-Russia negotiations. According to 2024 estimates from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, the US has 3,708 nuclear warheads, Russia has 4,380, while China has 500—90 more than in 2023. France and the UK follow with 290 and 225 warheads, respectively.

Beijing reaffirmed that its nuclear forces are maintained at the minimum level needed for national security and that it does not participate in an arms race.