China and the United States are set to engage in discussions on nuclear arms control, marking the first such talks since the Obama administration, as reported by the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday.
These forthcoming arms control consultations come as a result of discussions that began during a visit by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to Washington, during which the two nations expressed their intent to hold these discussions.
The arms control negotiations are scheduled to be led by Mallory Stewart, a senior official from the US State Department, and Sun Xiaobo, who serves as the head of the arms control department within China's Foreign Ministry.
Both the US State Department and China's embassy in Washington have not yet responded to Reuters' requests for comments regarding the exact timing and format of these talks.
Back in 2021, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan announced that the leaders of China and the United States had agreed to "initiate discussions on strategic stability," a reference to the concerns raised by Washington about China's nuclear weapon expansion. Nevertheless, the White House was quick to clarify that these discussions would not resemble formal arms reduction talks, similar to those that the United States had conducted with Russia.
Since this announcement, US officials have expressed their frustration over China's reluctance to discuss steps aimed at reducing nuclear weapon-related risks. The Pentagon reported in October that China's arsenal consists of more than 500 operational nuclear warheads, with this number predicted to exceed 1,000 warheads by 2030. However, China has consistently maintained that the United States possesses a significantly larger arsenal.
These arms control talks will occur in advance of a likely meeting between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping, expected to take place in San Francisco in November, though key details regarding the meeting are yet to be finalized.
Recent diplomatic engagements between China and the US, primarily at the request of Washington, have sought to salvage the deteriorating relationship between the two countries, which was exacerbated by the US downing of a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon in February.
Daryl Kimball, the executive director of the Washington-based Arms Control Association, suggests that the overdue arms control discussions will likely focus on enhancing transparency regarding each country's nuclear doctrines and improving channels for crisis communication.
Nevertheless, he adds that significant breakthroughs should not be expected in the near term, as achieving progress will require time and cooperation from both sides.
