MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th March, 2020) The United States is pushing China to commit to nuclear arms limits and sees more urgency in this than in bringing the United Kingdom or France to join the treaty, the top US diplomat in Russia said.
Speaking with Russia's Kommersant daily, Ambassador John Sullivan said Russia welcomed China's participation in the pact but believed it was up to Washington to convince Beijing to join.
He added that bringing London and Paris, key US allies, into the fold was "less expedient" since they were not considered a security challenge by the Pentagon.
The Chinese authorities are not pursuing nuclear parity with the United States or Russia and are trying to achieve a "nuclear triad" of land, sea and air forces, Sullivan pointed out.
The New Start treaty limiting deployed nuclear warheads of the two powers expires next February. The diplomat said there was still time to strike a three-party agreement that would reflect the "strategic reality."
