On November 3, US President Donald Trump said he wanted to see a cut in global nuclear arsenals; and revealed that he had directly discussed the issue with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and General Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping.
Mr. Trump affirmed that the US has more nuclear weapons than any other country and he thought, "there should be something" about the decentralization of nuclear weapons.
The US leader also issued an illustrative warning about the scale of destruction of existing weapons depots. We have enough nuclear weapons to detonate the world 150 times, he said. Russia has a lot of nuclear weapons and China will have a lot."
President Trump's announcement came just days after he ended his five-day trip to Asia, focusing on a summit with General Secretary and President Xi Jinping of China in South Korea on October 30. The meeting helped ease trade tensions after the two sides reached a breakthrough in tariffs, rare earths and fentanyl.
During the trip, Mr. Trump also publicly "opened" the possibility of meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Discussions on a potential summit between Trump and Putin in Budapest have also been held, although it has since been postponed.
Trump's disclosure that he has discussed nuclear clearance with both Russian and Chinese leaders shows that this could be part of the White House's greater diplomatic efforts. The US has long expressed its desire to include Beijing in a tripartite arms control framework (US - Russia - China), replacing the US - Russia bilateral treaties during the Cold War.
The last major nuclear arms control treaty between Russia and the US, the New START, expires in 2026. The US administration has long argued that any future deals must include China, a rapidly developing nuclear power with its arsenal.
Mr Trump's emphasis that China will have a lot of nuclear weapons seems to be a factual recognition of Beijing's growing power. This could be a signal that the US is seriously promoting a new global weapons security and control structure.
