The Pentagon in a congressionally mandated report last October said that China was developing its nuclear arsenal more quickly than the United States had earlier anticipated.
China possessed more than 500 operational nuclear warheads as of May 2023 and is likely to have more than 1,000 by 2030, it said.
The United States currently possesses about 3,700 nuclear warheads, trailing Russia’s roughly 4,500, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, which counts 410 warheads for China.
“China is willing to maintain communication with the United States on international arms control issues on the basis of mutual respect,” Lin said.
“But the United States must respect China’s core interests and create necessary conditions for dialogue,” he warned.
The United States switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979 but it has remained Taiwan’s most important partner and biggest arms supplier, sparking repeated condemnations from China.
Washington in June approved two military sales to Taiwan worth approximately US$300 million in total, mostly of spare and repair parts for the island’s F-16 fighter jets.
