China's state media criticizes the US over Biden's nuclear technique report

Wong Yu Liang | Moment |

China's state media and Foreign Ministry were quick to criticize Washington after the New York Times reported that US President Joe Biden had re-oriented the US nuclear strategic plan in March to focus on Beijing's rapid expansion of its nuclear arsenal.

The outspoken editor of the Global Times, a mouthpiece of the Beijing government, said on Thursday that China had become “the best excuse” for the United States to “justify maintaining such a massive nuclear arsenal in the post-Cold War world.”

“Instead of slandering and hyping up China, the US should reflect on itself and think about how to restore mutual trust with China through dialogue and sincerity,” the Global Times editor added.

The remarks echoed those of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, which accused the US of “pushing the narrative of a nuclear threat from China and finding excuses to gain strategic advantages.”

“We have no intention of engaging in any form of arms race with other countries,” said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning.

Beijing's comments followed a New York Times report that Biden's approval of the plan, titled “Nuclear Employment Guidance,” came amid Pentagon concerns that China's stockpiles would “rival those of the United States and Russia in size and variety over the next decade.”

The revised US strategy is intended to prepare America for “possible coordinated nuclear challenges from China, Russia and North Korea,” the New York Times reported, adding that its approval was never announced but an unclassified communication is expected to be sent to the US Congress before Biden leaves office.

The White House then stated that the nuclear strategic plan was not a response to a single country or a single threat.

The world's two largest economies have repeatedly clashed over their nuclear ambitions. A Pentagon annual report last year said China's nuclear stockpile was expected to grow to over 1,000 by 2030 and that China would have 500 operational nuclear warheads by May 2023, exceeding previous projections.

The US and China resumed their informal talks on nuclear weapons in March. Chinese representatives assured that they would not threaten to use nuclear weapons in connection with Taiwan.