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Tension between America and China regarding nuclear weapons has increased again. US officials have accused China of conducting a secret nuclear test about six years ago.
US State Department Assistant Secretary Christopher Yew said on Monday that almost six years ago, on June 22, 2020, an explosion occurred at the Underground Nuclear Test Center in Lop Nur, located in the western part of China.
This explosion was of 2.75 intensity, information about which was received from the station of neighboring country Kazakhstan. Yev described it as a nuclear explosion. He said the earthquakes were separate from mining explosions. It was like a single fire explosion, which is a sign of a nuclear test.
Yev said that China has deliberately increased its nuclear power. He said that since 2020, China’s nuclear weapons have increased from 200 to more than 600. It is estimated that by 2030 this number will reach above 1,000 and in the next 4-5 years, China may become equal to America.
US State Department Assistant Secretary Christopher Yew speaking at the UN-backed nuclear conference in Geneva.
America claims- China is expanding its nuclear arsenal
The claim comes at a time when the last major nuclear deal between the US and Russia, the New START treaty, expired this month. With the end of this treaty, the limitations on the weapons of the world’s two largest nuclear powers have been lifted, increasing the fear of a new nuclear arms race.
America is now demanding transparency from China and Russia and limiting dangerous weapons, while China is calling these allegations baseless.
Yew, addressing the UN-backed Disarmament Conference in Geneva, said that the biggest shortcoming of the New START agreement was that it did not include China’s rapidly growing and secretive nuclear program.
He said that Russia has about 2,000 non-strategic nuclear weapons, but China is also rapidly expanding its nuclear arsenal without any restriction.
Trump wants a three-way agreement between America, Russia and China
In the last few years, there have been many controversies at the international level regarding nuclear weapons. In 2010, the US and Russia signed the New START treaty, which limited the number of strategic nuclear weapons both countries possess.
Under this treaty, both countries had to limit their nuclear warheads to 1,550 and there were also restrictions on the number of missiles and bombers. The treaty did not cover Russia’s non-strategic nuclear weapons, such as short-range weapons.
In his first term, Trump tried to broker a three-way nuclear deal between the US, Russia and China, but it failed.
Trump also talked about resuming US nuclear tests in 2020, although later clarified that it would not involve explosive tests. America has not conducted any nuclear test since 1992.
China’s allegation- America wants to start testing itself
China has completely rejected these allegations. At the conference, China’s Ambassador Jian Shen said that America’s claims are completely false. This is America’s excuse to start testing itself.
He stressed that China has always adhered to the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and has not conducted any tests as per the commitments of the five nuclear powers (US, Russia, China, France, Britain).
China says that its nuclear stockpile is not as big as America or Russia, so the demand for three-way talks is wrong. He pointed out that China’s strategic position is different and it possesses nuclear weapons only for defense.
Tong Zhao, an expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, said that if China actually conducted the test, its image as a responsible nuclear power could be tarnished and the US could get a chance to resume testing.
Trump is putting pressure on other countries
America is now increasing international pressure on this issue. Yev has asked the conference to put pressure on other countries China and Russia to join multilateral talks.
The US has met representatives of Russia and China and discussions are ongoing with allies like France, Britain. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that America wants less nuclear weapons in the world, but will not remain silent in view of the growth of China and Russia.
This whole matter can become a major threat to global security. If nuclear tests resume, the arms race may further intensify. Experts believe that this problem can be solved only through transparency and dialogue.
Trump has ordered testing of nuclear weapons
Trump himself has ordered the Defense Ministry (Pentagon) to immediately start testing nuclear weapons by the end of 2025. He said that this testing should be at par with China and Russia.
America last conducted a nuclear test on September 23, 1992. This was America’s 1,030th testing. The testing was done at the Nevada Test Site, 2300 feet below the Rainier Mesa mountain, so that radiation would not spread outside. Its codename was-Divider.
The explosion occurred underground with such force that the rocks below had melted. The ground surface rose about 1 foot and then sank. A 150 meter wide and 10 meter deep crater is still visible there.
China is making 100 new nuclear weapons every year The 9 nuclear weaponized countries of the world are continuously increasing their nuclear power. China is doing this work at the fastest pace, which has added an average of 100 new warheads to its arsenal every year.
Now it has at least 600 nuclear warheads. This information has been given in the latest report of Sweden-based think tank SIPRI (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute).
SIPRI’s annual report states that apart from China, countries like America, Russia, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel are also modernizing their nuclear weapons.
India currently has 180 nuclear warheads. In 2023 this number was 172. That means India has also increased its capacity marginally. SIPRI believes that India is now developing canisterized missile technology. With this, missiles can be deployed even before a war situation.
Russia tested the world’s first nuclear powered cruise missile
Russia successfully tested the world’s first nuclear powered cruise missile Burevestnik-9M739 in October 2025. It is being claimed that this missile has unlimited range.
President Vladimir Putin had said that all its tests have been completed. No country in the world has such a missile. Earlier many experts did not believe that such a weapon could be made, but it has become a reality. No defense system can stop this.
Russian military chief Valery Gerasimov said that in the test Burevstnik flew for about 15 hours. During this period the missile covered a distance of 14 thousand kilometers.
The picture is of Russia’s Burevstnik missile storage facility. These missiles are kept here.
6.9 lakh deaths in America due to nuclear weapons testing Some American lawmakers believe that if America does not conduct nuclear testing again, its nuclear weapons stockpile may weaken. But scientists say that even without explosion, the condition of weapons can be checked with modern technology and they can be kept safe.
According to a research by University of Arizona economist Keith Meyers in 2017, due to the radiation released from these nuclear tests in America, about 6.9 lakh American citizens died or their health was seriously affected.
So far in the 21st century, only North Korea has conducted nuclear testing. America and South Korea have been continuously pressurizing Kim Jong Un to give up nuclear weapons and move towards a peaceful settlement.
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