US Accuses China Of Secret Nuclear Testing As It Pushes For Talks On New Arms Control Treaty

Last Updated:February 06, 2026, 22:16 IST

The US accused Beijing of conducting a secret nuclear test in 2020 as it pushed for three-way talks for a new treaty for arms control involving Russia and China.

The United States on Friday accused Beijing of conducting a secret nuclear test in 2020 as it began three-way talks with Russia and China to establish new limits on nuclear weapons, following the expiry of the New START treaty between Washington and Moscow.

“I can reveal that the US government is aware that China has conducted nuclear explosive tests, including preparing for tests with designated yields in the hundreds of tonnes," US Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and Security Thomas DiNanno told a Disarmament Conference in Geneva.

The Chinese military “sought to conceal testing by obfuscating the nuclear explosions because it recognised these tests violate test ban commitments. China has used ‘decoupling’, a method to decrease the effectiveness of seismic monitoring, to hide their activities from the world," he said.

“China conducted one such yield-producing nuclear test on June 22 of 2020," he said. These accusations mirror those levelled by US President Donald Trump last year, although he did not go into detail. Trump had announced in October that the US would begin nuclear testing “on an equal basis" with Moscow and Beijing.

While China did not directly address the accusations, the Chinese ambassador on disarmament, Shen Jian, said Beijing had always acted prudently and responsibly on nuclear issues. “China notes that the US continues in its statement to hype up the so-called China nuclear threat. China firmly opposes such false narratives," he said.

Three-Way Nuclear Talks

DiNanno’s comments highlighted tensions between Washington and Beijing as he was presenting a new US plan calling for three-way talks with Russia and China to set new limits on nuclear weapons, after the expiration of the New START Treaty with Moscow.

“Today, the United States faces threats from multiple nuclear powers. In short, a bilateral treaty with only one nuclear power is simply inappropriate in 2026 and going forward," DiNanno told the conference. The talks aim to replace the START treaty, which imposed constraints on deployments of nuclear missiles and warheads, with a new agreement including China, which has expanded its own nuclear arsenal.

DiNanno reiterated US projections that China will have over 1,000 nuclear weapons by 2030. However, China has declined participate in new negotiations “at this stage" with Moscow and Washington. “In this new era we hope the U.S. will abandon Cold War thinking… and embrace common and cooperative security," Shen said.

New START had limited the US and Russia to deploying 1,550 nuclear warheads each. Its expiration marks the first time in decades that no treaty exists to cap the world’s largest nuclear arsenals, raising concerns of a renewed arms race.

(with inputs from agencies)

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