The Wall Street Journal quoted sources as saying that China has accelerated the development of its nuclear arsenal, after it revised its assessment of the threat posed by the United States against it.
The newspaper said - quoting sources it described as close to the Chinese leadership - that the Chinese nuclear expansion preceded the Russian war on Ukraine for a long time, but the reluctance of the United States to directly intervene in this war reinforced Beijing's decision to focus on developing nuclear weapons to be a deterrent to Washington.
The newspaper reports that China's leaders see strengthening its nuclear arsenal as a way to deter the United States from directly interfering in a potential conflict over Taiwan.
Among the latest steps in this aspect is the acceleration of work this year on more than 100 suspected nuclear missile silos (which are cylindrical underground facilities for launching missiles) in remote areas in western China, according to the newspaper, citing analysts who studied satellite images of the region. And they said that these silos could be used to launch missiles carrying nuclear warheads and could reach the United States.
US officials say that China's intentions behind this nuclear expansion are not clear.
But sources close to the Chinese leadership told the newspaper that the increasing Chinese focus on developing nuclear weapons is driven by fears that Washington may overthrow the communist government in Beijing, after US policy has taken a more severe turn towards China under the administration of Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden.
Military officials and security analysts in the United States fear that the development of China's nuclear arsenal is an indication that Beijing may launch a sudden nuclear attack, but sources close to the Chinese leadership said that Beijing is committed not to be the first to use nuclear weapons.