China: U.S. must fulfill its nuclear disarmament commitments

Pars Today — China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Friday that the U.S. request for Beijing to join nuclear arms control talks is unreasonable, stressing that Washington should sincerely fulfill its own nuclear disarmament commitments.

Mao Ning stated that China’s nuclear capabilities are not comparable to those of the U.S. and Russia, and that asking Beijing to join arms control negotiations at this stage is “unfair, unreasonable, and impossible.” She added that the United States, which possesses the world’s largest nuclear arsenal, should take genuine steps to reduce its stockpile and create conditions for achieving complete global nuclear disarmament.

U.S. President Donald Trump, during a meeting with leaders of five Central Asian countries at the White House, claimed that Russia, China, and the U.S. could reach an agreement on nuclear arms reduction, describing nuclear disarmament as “a great thing.” He also said he had discussed the issue with Moscow and Beijing.

Trump had previously announced that he had instructed the U.S. Department of War to resume nuclear weapons testing.