China’s state media and foreign ministry criticized the United States after The New York Times reported that President Biden had shifted the country’s nuclear strategic plan to focus on Beijing’s nuclear arsenal expansion. The Global Times editor stated that the U.S. is using China as an excuse to justify its massive nuclear arsenal and called for dialogue and mutual trust instead of smear campaigns against China. The Chinese foreign ministry denied engaging in an arms race and accused the U.S. of pushing a narrative of China as a nuclear threat for strategic advantage. The revised U.S. strategy aimed to address potential nuclear challenges from China, Russia, and North Korea.
The White House clarified that the nuclear strategic plan was not targeted at a specific country or threat. Both countries have clashed over their nuclear ambitions, with the Pentagon predicting that China could have over 1,000 nuclear warheads by 2030. The U.S. and China have held informal nuclear arms talks, with China affirming it will not use atomic threats over Taiwan. The ongoing tensions highlight the growing competition between the two global powers in the realm of nuclear weapons, with both sides emphasizing the need for dialogue and trust-building to prevent further escalation.
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