China increases the number of nuclear warheads

Based in Stockholm, Sweden, SIPRI, which analyzes data on armed conflict, military spending and arms trade, and disarmament and arms control, has released a report on countries with nuclear warheads.

Claiming that there are 12,512 nuclear warheads around the world, SIPRI reported that 9,576 of them are usable warheads.

“Of these, approximately 3,844 warheads have been deployed with missiles and aircraft, of which some 2,000 have been kept on maximum operational alert. That is, they are kept at airbases that are connected to missiles or house nuclear bombers.

90 PERCENT OF WARHEADS ARE IN THE US AND RUSSIA

In the SIPRI report, it was stated that 90 percent of nuclear warheads are in the US and Russian inventory.

“Russia and the United States together have almost 90 percent of all nuclear weapons,” the report says. The sizes of their nuclear arsenals appear to have remained relatively stable in 2022, although transparency regarding nuclear powers has diminished in both countries after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

CHINA ADDED 60 NUCLEAR WAR HEADS TO INVENTORY

The highlight of the SIPRI report was that China added 60 nuclear warheads to its inventory between 2022 and 2023.

“China’s nuclear arsenal increased from 350 warheads in January 2022 to 410 in January 2023 and is expected to continue to increase,” the statement said.

SIPRI official Hans M. Kristensen said in a statement on the China data: “China has begun to significantly expand its nuclear arsenal. “It is increasingly difficult to reconcile this trend with China’s goal of having the minimum nuclear power necessary to protect its national security,” he said.

WHICH COUNTRIES HAVE NUCLEAR WARHEADS?

In the SIPRI report it is seen that 9 countries have nuclear warheads.

The report lists these countries as the United States, Russia, England, France, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea, and Israel. The number of nuclear warheads is divided into deployed and stored.

In this context, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel do not have deployed nuclear warheads.

China has 410, India 164, Pakistan 170, North Korea 30 and Israel 60 warheads in storage.

It is seen that the United States has 5,244 nuclear warheads in its inventory, Russia has 5,889, Britain has 225, and France has 290 nuclear warheads.