China Joining 'Nuclear War Prevention' Says "Nuclear Weapon Modernization for Security Will Continue"

Puchong, Director of the Arms Control Department at the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Revealed at a press briefing on the 4th (local time)

China announced its policy to continue modernizing its nuclear weapons just one day after the five major nuclear-armed countries pledged to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons worldwide. The photo shows Fu Chong, Director-General of the Arms Control Department at the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, holding a press conference in Beijing, China, on the 4th (local time). Photo by Yonhap News.

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] China announced its intention to continue modernizing its nuclear weapons just one day after promising to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons worldwide alongside nuclear-armed countries. It explained that this is a separate issue from participating in the joint statement that defines the purpose of nuclear weapons as defensive.

According to AFP on the 4th (local time), Pu Zhong, Director-General of the Arms Control Department at the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated at a press briefing regarding the joint statement by five countries (the United States, China, Russia, the United Kingdom, and France) that "we will continue to modernize nuclear weapons for security purposes."

Pu also denied the U.S. claim that China is rapidly strengthening its nuclear capabilities, saying, "China has always adopted a no-first-use policy on nuclear weapons, and we maintain our nuclear capabilities at the minimum level necessary for national security."

While pledging not to use nuclear weapons preemptively, China intends to continue enhancing its nuclear capabilities for security, despite lagging behind the U.S. in terms of nuclear arsenal size. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), a Swedish think tank, estimated in a report last June that as of January last year, China possessed 350 nuclear warheads, the U.S. had 5,550, and Russia had 6,255.

Meanwhile, Pu Zhong introduced that "during the negotiation process of the joint statement, China pushed for all parties to agree on the point that 'nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought.'" He added, "China hopes that the five countries will make greater efforts to abandon nuclear threat policies based on the first use of nuclear weapons and to conclude an international legal document committing to no first use of nuclear weapons against each other based on the joint statement. China will continue to actively work toward this goal."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.