China syndromeU.S. Says China Conducted Zero-Yield Nuclear Tests
The United States says that China may have secretly conducted low-level underground nuclear tests, even though the country has signed a treaty banning such tests. Zero yield tests are nuclear test in which there is no explosive chain reaction of the type ignited by the detonation of a nuclear warhead.
The United States says that China may have secretly conducted low-level underground nuclear tests, even though the country has signed a treaty banning such tests. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that the charge, made by the State Department, may exacerbate already tense relations between the two countries.
The United States is concerned about China’s potential breaches of the “zero yield” standard for nuclear test occurred several times during 2019 at China’s Lop Nur nuclear test site, the State Department was quoted to say in the Journal’s report.
Zero yield tests are nuclear test in which there is no explosive chain reaction of the type ignited by the detonation of a nuclear warhead.
“China’s possible preparation to operate its Lop Nur test site year-round, its use of explosive containment chambers, extensive excavation activities at Lop Nur and a lack of transparency on its nuclear testing activities … raise concerns regarding its adherence to the zero yield standard,” the State Department said.
China had violated the 1996 Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), of which it is a member, by blocking, between early 2018 and August 2019, data transmissions from sensors linked to a monitoring center operated by the CTBT.
China’s nuclear arsenal is estimated to consist of about 300 nuclear weapons of various sizes.
Three of the five declared nuclear powers –Russia, Britain, and France – have ratified the CTBT. The United States and China have signed the treaty but have not ratified it. Both countries say, though, they adhere to its stipulations.
