On June 16, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) released its 2025 Yearbook. There are nine nuclear-armed countries in the world: United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea, and Israel. Russia remains the world’s largest nuclear power in terms of total military stockpile, with 4,309 warheads. The United States ranks second with 3,700 warheads. China possesses at least 600 nuclear warheads, making it the world’s third-largest nuclear power.
Since 2023, China has been adding about 100 warheads annually, a pace far exceeding that of other countries. At this rate, China could possess 1,600 nuclear warheads by 2035.
The yearbook also noted that, as of January 2025, China had completed or nearly completed construction of approximately 350 new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) silos across three major desert regions in northern China and three mountainous regions in eastern China. China’s ICBM arsenal buildup plan is to match that of Russia or the United States.
Source: Epoch Times, June 18, 2025
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/25/6/18/n14534239.htm