Islamabad: China's nuclear arsenal is expanding more rapidly than any other nation's, with an increase of approximately 100 new warheads annually, a research group has indicated.

According to Radio Free Asia, China's nuclear capabilities could potentially match the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) counts of either Russia or the United States by the end of the decade. These conclusions are drawn from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute's (SIPRI) annual report on armaments, disarmament, and international security, published on Monday.

The report details that depending on China's strategic decisions regarding force structure, the nation could achieve parity in ICBM numbers with Russia or the USA by 2030. The U.S. Department of Defense had previously estimated in December that China's warhead count had tripled over four years. Despite this growth, SIPRI notes that even if China's arsenal reaches the projected 1,500 warheads by 2035, it will still be only about one-third the size of Russia's and the U.S.'s current stockpiles.

Russia and the United States collectively hold around 90 percent of all nuclear weapons, with each possessing approximately 1,700 deployed warheads and additional reserves in storage. On Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun responded to the SIPRI report, emphasizing that China's nuclear strategy prioritizes self-defense. Guo stated that China maintains its nuclear capabilities at the minimum level necessary for national security and does not engage in an arms race, reiterating China's no-first-use policy on nuclear weapons.

SIPRI also estimated that North Korea has assembled around 50 warheads and has sufficient fissile material to produce up to 40 more, with an ongoing acceleration in fissile material production. The report highlights that North Korea continues to prioritize its military nuclear program as a key component of its national security strategy, citing leader Kim Jong Un's November call for limitless expansion of the program.