The United States (US) Department of Defense's annual report to Congress on Chinese military developments, published on Wednesday, 3 November, said that China could have 700 deliverable nuclear warheads by 2027, and over a 1,000 warheads by 2030, news agency AFP reported.
The growth of China’s nuclear arsenal is two-and-a-half times the size of what the Pentagon predicted only a year ago, as per the report.
The report added that the People's Republic of China (PRC) "is investing in, and expanding, the number of its land-, sea-, and air-based nuclear delivery platforms and constructing the infrastructure necessary to support this major expansion of its nuclear forces."
A US defence official noted that the acceleration by the People’s Republic of China is “very concerning to us” and that it "raises questions about their intentions,” AFP reported.
China's Reaction
Meanwhile, as per AFP, China on Thursday claimed that Washington was overhyping the threat while its foreign ministry dubbed the US report as “full of prejudice”.
"The report released by the US Department of Defense, like previous similar reports, ignores facts and is full of prejudice.”Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin, according to AFP
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin also reportedly called the US the “world’s largest source of nuclear threat”.
More Details
As per Arms Control Association, more than 90 percent of the world’s nuclear warheads belong to Russia (6,255) and US (5,550). Meanwhile, China currently has 350 nuclear warheads.
The Pentagon has declared China its principal security concern for the future, as China is trying to build its "nuclear triad”, having capabilities to launch nuclear missiles from land, air, and from submarines, the report stated.
(With inputs from AFP.)
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