China has announced it will not participate in nuclear disarmament negotiations “at this stage,” shortly after the New START treaty between the United States and Russia expired, a development that has sparked concern about a potential new arms race.
The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) — the last remaining pact constraining strategic nuclear weapons between the two largest nuclear powers — formally lapsed on February 5, 2026, ending decades of agreed limits on deployed warheads and delivery systems.
Beijing reiterated its stance at a regular press briefing, with a Foreign Ministry spokesperson saying that China’s nuclear arsenal and strategic context differ significantly from those of the United States and Russia, and that it will not join trilateral arms control talks for now.
The spokesperson emphasised that China supports global strategic stability but indicated that its nuclear forces are calibrated around defense needs rather than matching U.S. and Russian levels.
The United States has signalled that any future nuclear pact should include China, but efforts to bring Beijing to the negotiating table have not succeeded.
The expiration of New START — first signed in 2010 and previously extended — marks the end of legally binding limits on U.S. and Russian nuclear arsenals. Over 80% of the world’s nuclear warheads are held by these two nations, and experts have warned that without such constraints, the risk of unregulated arsenal expansion and strategic competition may rise.
The treaty also facilitated on-site inspections and data exchanges, mechanisms that never fully resumed following disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
China’s declaration comes amid wider concerns about the future of global arms control architecture and calls for renewed dialogue among nuclear powers to prevent escalation and maintain strategic stability.
AFP