Trump Says US Is Holding Talks With Russia, China On Nuclear Disarmament

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Washington is holding talks with Russia and China on nuclear disarmament, expressing hope that the countries with the world’s largest nuclear arsenals could reduce their stockpiles.

In an interview with Newsmax, Trump said he would like to see nuclear weapons eliminated, adding that the United States was discussing the issue with both Moscow and Beijing.

“The whole thing is a shame, because I’d love to denuclearize if possible, but we’re actually talking to Russia about that, and we’re talking to China about that denuclearization,” Trump told the outlet.

Trump Expects China To Catch Up With US In Five Years

Trump said he expects China to “catch up” with the United States in nuclear capabilities within the next five years.

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), Russia has the world’s largest inventory of nuclear warheads, followed by the United States and China. The US, however, has more deployed nuclear warheads than Russia, according to the figures cited in the report.

Newsmax also reported that Trump had spoken with Chinese President Xi Jinping about nuclear disarmament.

China’s expanding nuclear arsenal has been a subject of concern for Washington, with Trump indicating that Beijing’s growing capabilities make its participation in future arms-control discussions increasingly important.

New START Treaty Expiry Raises Arms-Control Questions

Trump’s remarks come after the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, commonly known as New START, expired earlier this year.

Signed in 2010 by the United States and Russia, the treaty placed limits on the countries’ deployed strategic nuclear warheads and delivery systems. It was extended once, for five years, by former US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Any further extension of the treaty’s limits would require a new decision by the two countries, rather than relying on the original extension provision.

The treaty’s expiry has raised questions about the future of nuclear arms control between Washington and Moscow, particularly as China continues to expand its nuclear capabilities.

Nuclear Disarmament Remains A Major Challenge

Bringing the world’s largest nuclear powers into a broader disarmament framework would represent a significant diplomatic challenge. The United States and Russia possess the overwhelming majority of the world’s nuclear weapons, while China’s arsenal has been growing.

Trump’s latest comments suggest that Washington is interested in discussions involving all three countries. However, the precise scope, format and progress of the reported talks were not detailed in the remarks provided.

Whether the discussions lead to a formal agreement will depend on negotiations between the countries and their willingness to accept verifiable limits on their nuclear arsenals.