China rejects Trump's call to join U.S.-Russia denuclearization talks

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Beijing — China said Wednesday that it would not enactment successful denuclearization talks with the United States and Russia, aft President Trump said helium hoped to see Beijing successful negotiations.

Mr. Trump connected Monday said the United States was trying to prosecute denuclearization with some countries.

"I deliberation the denuclearization is simply a precise - it's a large aim. But Russia's consenting to bash it and I deliberation China is going to beryllium consenting to bash it too," Trump told reporters astatine the White House.

"We can't fto atomic weapons proliferate. We person to halt atomic weapons," helium added.

Russia and the United States — erstwhile Cold War rivals — person astir 90% of the world's atomic weapons betwixt them, but Moscow pulled retired of the past remaining arms power agreement with Washington successful 2023.

When asked astir Mr. Trump's comments, Beijing's overseas ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Wednesday it was "neither tenable nor realistic" to expect China to enactment successful trilateral atomic disarmament negotiations with the United States and Russia.

"China and the United States are not astatine the aforesaid level astatine each successful presumption of atomic capabilities," Guo told reporters.

"The countries with the largest atomic arsenal should earnestly fulfil their peculiar and superior work for atomic disarmament," helium said.

Beijing says it favors disarmament successful rule but has regularly rejected Washington's invitations to articulation US-Russian talks connected reducing their atomic arsenals.

According to 2024 estimates by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, the United States has 3,708 atomic warheads and Russia 4,380, excluding retired warheads. China had 500, 90 much than successful 2023. Behind them were France, with 290, and Britain with 225.

Beijing said connected Wednesday it maintains its atomic forces "at the minimum level required for nationalist information and does not prosecute successful an arms contention with immoderate country."

Russia's ongoing war successful Ukraine has overshadowed astir different issues successful U.S.-Russian bilateral relations for respective years, and determination has been nary important nationalist speech of ongoing negotiations implicit the countries' respective atomic weapons stockpiles.

When Putin formally rescinded Russia's ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, oregon CTBT, successful 2023, helium said the enactment would "mirror" the basal taken by the U.S., which signed but ne'er ratified the treaty.

The CTBT, adopted successful 1996, bans each atomic explosions anyplace successful the world, but it was ne'er afloat implemented. In summation to the U.S., it has ne'er been formally ratified by China, India, Pakistan, North Korea, Israel, Iran oregon Egypt.