China has strongly refuted allegations made by the United States that it conducted secret nuclear explosive tests, dismissing the claims as “outright lies.”
The accusations were presented by U.S. Under Secretary of State for Arms Control, Thomas DiNanno, at the UN Conference on Disarmament in Geneva last Friday. DiNanno alleged that China carried out tests, including one on June 22, 2020, and is preparing for tests with larger yields.
In a statement issued on Monday, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs firmly rejected the charges. “The US allegations are completely groundless and are outright lies. China firmly opposes the US attempt to fabricate excuses for its own restarting of nuclear tests,” the statement read, urging Washington to “immediately stop its irresponsible actions.”
The diplomatic exchange occurs amid heightened tensions over nuclear arms control. The last major treaty between the U.S. and Russia, New START, expired last week. DiNanno’s remarks accompanied a new U.S. proposal for trilateral arms control talks involving Russia and China—an offer Beijing has already declined “at this stage.”
The controversy follows an October statement by U.S. President Donald Trump, who said Washington would resume nuclear testing “on an equal basis” with Moscow and Beijing, though he did not provide specific details.
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