|
PRC touts ¡¥second strike¡¦ capability
REUTERS , BEIJING
Friday, Apr 23, 2010, Page 1
China needs a limited nuclear ¡§second strike¡¨ force to deter foes from
threatening it with atomic weapons, the nation¡¦s main military newspaper said
yesterday, in a rare account of Beijing¡¦s nuclear strategy.
The commentary in the official Liberation Army Daily comes during intensifying
atomic diplomacy ¡X after a nuclear security summit hosted by US President Barack
Obama and before an international conference next month about the future of the
nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
China has been gradually modernizing its relatively small nuclear arsenal and
some critics of proposals to cut dramatically Western nuclear forces have said
uncertainty about Beijing¡¦s plans should deter such proposals.
Retired People¡¦s Liberation Army Major-General Xu Guangyu (®}¥ú¦t) said in the
newspaper commentary that China wanted a minimal nuclear deterrent and would
avoid any arms race.
¡§China resolutely adheres to a defensive nuclear strategy and has always adhered
to a policy that it will never be the first to use nuclear weapons at any time
and under any circumstances,¡¨ wrote Xu, now a researcher at the state-run China
Arms Control and Disarmament Association. ¡§The most basic feature of China¡¦s
nuclear strategy, in a nutshell, is to be a deterrent, but present no threat.¡¨
The commentary does not suggest China is rethinking its nuclear doctrine, but
spells out in sharp terms Beijing¡¦s rationale for upgrading its atomic forces.
Xu said the commentary was intended to address worries about China¡¦s nuclear
stance, especially in Japan, India and the US.
The US and Russia this month signed a pact to cut their much larger atomic
arsenals and Obama separately announced a shift in US doctrine, vowing not to
use atomic weapons against non-nuclear states that abide by the NPT.
Like all the nuclear weapons states, China is secretive about its arsenal. The
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute has estimated that by last year
China possessed 186 deployed strategic nuclear warheads.
¡@
|
