U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released a statement today regarding reports that the State Department is encouraging the resumption of informal nuclear talks with China.
“Earlier this month, a senior U.S. National Security Council (NSC) official publicly confirmed China had once again rejected arms control talks with the United States. Today’s reports about the resumption of informal nuclear talks with China are an obvious attempt by the State Department to undo the NSC’s acknowledgement of the facts – China is rapidly growing its nuclear program and continues to reject arms control,” said Risch.
He continued, “The State Department’s obsession with disarmament and its determination to pursue arms control talks, even when doors have been firmly shut by our adversaries, undermines the coherence of U.S. nuclear policy. It also enables China to leverage our desire for engagement to get things it wants.”
Risch emphasized that “informal dialogues can be effective when tied to moving forward with official talks. When divorced from official talks, they provide a one-way means for Beijing to gain insight into U.S. thinking on nuclear modernization and deterrence.” He concluded by stating that “rather than issuing anonymous support for these talks in the press, the administration should disavow them.”
