China says it will not join the trilateral nuclear arms talk

The Chinese Foreign Ministry insisted on Monday that it will not be joining any potential talks on a new nuclear agreement between Russia and the United States, despite US President Donald Trump hinting at a possible trilateral deal.

"China opposes any incidents of anybody speaking on China's behalf and will not participate in any talks on a trilateral agreement on nuclear disarmament," the ministry's spokesperson Geng Shuang stated.

China has always advocated the complete prohibition and thorough destruction of nuclear weapons, Geng added.

China believes that countries with the largest nuclear arsenals have a special responsibility when it comes to nuclear disarmament and should continue to further reduce nuclear weapons in a verifiable and irreversible manner, creating conditions for other countries to participate, he said.

On Friday, Trump and Russia's President Vladimir Putin discussed the possibility of negotiating a new nuclear deal between their countries, while the White House also noted the US president is considering including China in the talks on a new nuclear arrangement.

Earlier this year, Washington and subsequently Moscow suspended their obligations under the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF). Meanwhile, the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START), introduced by the US and Russia in 2011, is set to expire in 2021.