The U.S. Withdrawal From The INF Treaty Is Aimed At China -- News, Commentary, And Analysis

Mu Cui and Wesley Rahn, DW: INF Treaty: Would US dropout begin an arms race with China?

The strategic rivalry between the US and China in the Asia Pacific could heat up if both sides develop new nuclear weapons. Chinese media are already calling for Beijing to expand its nuclear deterrence capability.

Last Saturday, US President Donald Trump announced during a speech that the US would be pulling out of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) with Russia.

Although China is not included in the landmark treaty, which prohibits the development of intermediate-range, ground-based nuclear and conventional missiles, Beijing is clearly being put under pressure by the potential expansion of US military capacity.

On Monday, US National Security Advisor John Bolton arrived in Moscow and reiterated that the US would begin developing intermediate-range weapons capability if Russia and China continued developing and testing similar weapons.

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The U.S. Withdrawal From The INF Treaty Is Aimed At China -- News, Commentary, And Analysis

China Says U.S. Should ‘Think Twice’ About Leaving Missile Pact -- Bloomberg
US must 'think twice' about nuclear treaty pullout: China -- AFP
Trump's missile treaty pullout could escalate tension with China -- Phil Stewart, Reuters
Why America Leaving the INF Treaty is China's New Nightmare -- Nathan Levine, National Interest
Trump’s Plan to Leave a Major Arms Treaty With Russia Might Actually Be About China -- Foreign Policy
Death of nuclear treaty with Russia could start arms race with China -- Harry J. Kazianis, The Hill
Chinese missile build-up has also strained US-Russia nuclear arms pact -- SCMP/Politico
Trump's INF Treaty Termination Puts China on Notice—At Last -- James Carafano, The National Interest
Pulling out of nuclear arms pact adds to US options to ‘erode Chinese advantage’ -- Kristin Huang, SCMP
Trump's Picking China as Pretext for Quitting INF is 'Utter Nonsense' – Analyst -- Sputnik
Trump May Revive the Cold War, but China Could Change the Dynamics -- The New York Times