On August 25, US President Donald Trump said the US wanted to reach an agreement to cut the nuclear arsenal with Russia and China. He revealed that he discussed the issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting in Alaska.
Both sides have expressed interest in reducing nuclear power, Trump said. We want denutionalization. This power is too great. We have talked about it, as well as many other topics such as missiles and nuclear limitations. We will bring China to the discussion. The US currently has the most; Russia is second, and China is third, but China will catch up within 5 years," Trump said at the White House.
The data Mr. Trump cited is not clear from which source. According to the International Institute for Peace Research (SIPRI), Russia has about 2,591 warheads in stockpiles and 1,718 deployed warheads, compared to 1,930 and 1,770 in the US. China is estimated to possess 576 warheads, of which only 24 were deployed. The UK and France have 120 and 280 deployed warheads, respectively.
Mr. Trump also revealed that he continued to talk with Mr. Putin after the Alaska summit. He described all the conversations as good, but admitted his disappointment at the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. I think the conflict in Ukraine will be the easiest to resolve, but it is extremely difficult, he said.
Mr Trump's speech showed that the US wants to expand the scope of nuclear negotiations, not only with Russia as in previous treaties, but also including China - a country that is increasingly modernizing its arsenal.
