China tells US to stop attacks on peaceful nuclear facilities

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told reporters in Beijing that China last week submitted its national implementation report to the 11th Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

Guo said the review conference should urge the US "to fulfill its special and primary responsibility for nuclear disarmament, correct acts of attacking peaceful nuclear facilities of non-nuclear-weapon states, stop forming nuclear alliances through arrangements such as nuclear sharing, and take measures to curb negative trends such as Japan seeking independent nuclear capabilities."

Washington, he added, should properly address nuclear proliferation risks arising from the nuclear submarine cooperation between the US, the UK and Australia, known as AUKUS.

The report also called for discussions on reducing nuclear risks and preventing nuclear war.

It also called for using political and diplomatic means to resolve nuclear issues
and safeguarding the right of developing countries to the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

Beijing, he added, adheres to "a self-defensive nuclear strategy, follows a no-first-use nuclear policy, and keeps its nuclear capabilities at the minimum level required for national security."

China "firmly" upholds the authority and effectiveness of the NPT, Guo further said.

“All parties should reaffirm commitment to maintaining global strategic stability and adhere to the principle of undiminished security for all, and advance nuclear disarmament in a step-by-step manner," he added.

The report, he went on to say, also calls for the conclusion of a treaty on mutual no-first-use of nuclear weapons.

China has already condemned the US and Israel over their joint attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities, calling it a “heavy blow” to the NPT.

Since they initiated the attacks on Iran last month, the US and Israel have targeted Iranian nuclear facilities in the Iranian cities of Ardakan, Bushehr, and Khondab – home to key nuclear-related infrastructure.