China reaffirms its opaque nuclear posture

China is expanding its nuclear-warhead arsenal at blistering pace, one that constitutes the fastest buildup of nuclear weaponry in human history.

- AGENCIES

Workers stand in front of a nuclear reactor under contsruction in Taishan, China

Alarmingly, Beijing has failed to explain why it perceives the need to do so, until now, that is.

A Pentagon report published in late 2023 tabulated 500 operational nuclear warheads in China, a figure that had increased to 600+ by late 2024. By 2030, China will have a

predicted 1,000 nuclear warheads.

China set about offering clarity as to its nuclear posture through a white paper entitled “China’s Arms Control, Disarmament, and Nonproliferation in the New Era”.