NATO chief presses China to join talks on nuclear arms limits

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg is pressing China to join talks on limiting nuclear arms, the Associated Press reported.

Stoltenberg said Monday that China has to take full responsibility for arms control, adding that the country will benefit from limits on numbers and increased transparency and more predictability. 

Stoltenberg also warned that China is continuing to expand its nuclear arsenal, saying that this is happening without any “limitation and constraint,” according to the AP.

“China is building a large number of missile silos, which can significantly increase its nuclear capability. All of this is happening without any limitation or constraint. And with a complete lack of transparency,” Stoltenberg said. 

The NATO chief added that more countries should be involved in future missile restriction talks as well, the AP reported. 

This comes amid Stoltenberg welcoming the current agreement with the U.S. and Russia to extend their NEW START policy, which limits their strategic nuclear weapons. 

The U.S. recently pulled itself out of the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) in 2019, blaming Russia for violating the long-standing pact, which Russia has denied any wrongdoing, the AP noted.