China Halts Nuclear Talks with U.S. Over Taiwan Arms Sales

China has stopped talks on nuclear non-proliferation and arms control with the United States in protest against U.S. arms sales to Taiwan. Beijing said these sales have hurt the political atmosphere needed for continued discussions.

The U.S. called China’s decision “unfortunate.” Experts believe this move could seriously harm global arms-control efforts. China and the U.S. began nuclear weapons talks in November to ease tensions before a summit between Presidents Xi Jinping and Joe Biden. No further talks have been publicly announced since then, and a White House official in January asked Beijing to respond to their ideas on reducing risks.

A spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Wednesday that the U.S.’s arms sales to Taiwan have “seriously compromised the political atmosphere” for continued arms-control discussions. As a result, China has decided to pause talks on arms control and non-proliferation with the U.S. The spokesperson added that China is open to communicating about international arms control but the U.S. must respect China’s core interests for dialogue to continue.

The U.S. switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979 but remains Taiwan’s most important partner and largest arms supplier, which has led to repeated condemnations from China. Over the past four years, Taiwan has protested increased Chinese military activity near the island, including almost daily missions by Chinese warplanes and warships. In June, the U.S. approved two military sales to Taiwan worth about $300 million, mainly for spare and repair parts for F-16 fighter jets.

U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller criticized China’s decision, saying it follows Russia’s lead in linking arms-control talks to other bilateral challenges. He said this approach undermines strategic stability and increases the risk of an arms race. Miller added that by suspending these consultations, China has chosen not to pursue efforts to manage strategic risks and prevent costly arms races, but the U.S. will remain open to developing risk-reduction measures with China.

The Biden administration supports “compartmentalization,” where nuclear arms control talks are separated from other contentious issues between the U.S. and China. China’s decision comes just over a month after the Biden administration suggested that the U.S. might need to deploy more strategic nuclear weapons to counter growing threats from China and Russia.

Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, said the U.S., Russia, and China, as signatories of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, are legally bound to engage in talks to prevent an arms race. He emphasized that serious dialogue is the only way to achieve this, and China’s decision, along with Russia’s refusal, are significant setbacks.

The U.S. has about 3,700 nuclear warheads, with roughly 1,419 deployed as strategic nuclear warheads. Russia has around 1,550 deployed nuclear weapons and a stockpile of about 4,489 nuclear warheads. The U.S. estimates that China has 500 operational nuclear warheads, likely to exceed 1,000 by 2030.

U.S. officials have expressed frustration with Beijing’s lack of interest in discussing steps to reduce nuclear weapons risks. However, Beijing argues that the U.S. already has a much larger arsenal.