Chinese Representative Says US Is Obsessed With Absolute Strategic Advantage

China has criticized the United States for pursuing what it described as an “absolute strategic advantage,” warning that such policies could undermine global and regional strategic stability and further weaken the international arms control and non-proliferation system.

Speaking on October 8 during the general debate of the First Committee of the 81st United Nations General Assembly, Sun Xiaobo, head of the Chinese delegation and director-general of the Department of Arms Control of China's Foreign Ministry, outlined Beijing's position on nuclear disarmament, international security and arms control.

Sun said the post-World War II international order, the international system centered on the United Nations and the basic norms of international relations based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter were facing serious challenges. He argued that the pursuit of unilateral strategic advantages was contributing to greater instability in the international security environment.

Addressing US policy, Sun said Washington was “obsessed with absolute strategic advantage” and continued to build nuclear alliances through arrangements including “nuclear sharing” and “extended deterrence.” In China's view, these policies seriously undermine global and regional strategic stability and reflect what Beijing considers double standards in arms control and non-proliferation.

Nuclear sharing generally refers to arrangements under which a nuclear-armed state cooperates with allies on nuclear deterrence and related military capabilities. Extended deterrence refers to security commitments in which a state provides deterrence protection to its allies. Both concepts have become increasingly prominent in international discussions as major-power strategic competition intensifies.

Sun emphasized China's support for the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons as a cornerstone of the international nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament system. He also said that the international consensus supporting the prohibition of nuclear tests should not be challenged.

China further called for strengthening, rather than weakening, the authority and effectiveness of existing multilateral arms control mechanisms, including the Conference on Disarmament and the First Committee of the UN General Assembly.

On nuclear disarmament, China has repeatedly argued that the countries possessing the largest nuclear arsenals should shoulder special and primary responsibilities. Earlier this year, China's Foreign Ministry said nuclear-armed states with the largest arsenals should make further reductions and create conditions for other nuclear-armed states to participate in the disarmament process.

Sun also addressed Japan's military policy, saying that the country's current government was accelerating what China described as “remilitarization” and had become a prominent factor threatening regional peace and stability.

He criticized remarks by Japanese officials about potentially discussing nuclear weapons and said attempts to abandon Japan's longstanding “Three Non-Nuclear Principles” would pose a serious challenge to the international nuclear non-proliferation regime. He also linked Japan's call to remove the so-called “enemy state clauses” from the UN Charter to what Beijing views as an effort to challenge the postwar international order.

Artificial intelligence and military technology were another focus of China's statement. Sun said China supports the development of peaceful, just, reliable and controllable military artificial intelligence, emphasizing that humans should remain in control and retain ultimate responsibility for decisions involving weapons systems.

China also opposed attempts to use artificial intelligence to seek “absolute military advantage” and called for opposition to an AI arms race. Beijing said the United Nations should play an appropriate role in global governance and rejected the creation of exclusive blocs or alliance-based governance arrangements.

The Chinese position reflects broader concerns over the relationship between technological development and strategic stability. As nuclear capabilities, missile defense systems, military alliances and artificial intelligence develop simultaneously, governments face growing challenges in preventing strategic competition from turning into an uncontrolled arms race.

Sun said China would continue to pursue what it described as a fair, cooperative, balanced and effective approach to arms control. Beijing also said it would support genuine multilateralism and the central role of the United Nations in international arms control.

The speech comes amid continuing debates over the future of the global nuclear order and the effectiveness of existing arms control mechanisms. China's position is that long-term security cannot be achieved through unilateral pursuit of strategic dominance and that international security requires dialogue, mutual restraint and multilateral cooperation.