The United States accused China of testing a submarine-launched intercontinental ballistic missile, to which China responded that the U.S. double standards were laid bare.

The U.S. is now turning the tables! On July 7, the U.S. Department of State issued a statement claiming that the United States detected a test launch of an unarmed intercontinental-range ballistic missile from a submarine by China, which fell into the South Pacific. While the U.S. claims to be exerting unprecedented efforts to prevent nuclear proliferation, China is doing exactly the opposite. Beijing’s rapid and “opaque” expansion of its nuclear arsenal has caused deep concern across the region and the world.

Clearly, the U.S. stance toward our launch of an intercontinental missile is unequivocally opposed. Not only does the U.S. oppose it, but it also positions itself on the moral high ground of “unprecedented efforts to prevent nuclear proliferation.” However, we would like to ask: if the U.S. is truly adopting such an unprecedented approach to prevent nuclear proliferation, then why does it continue to share nuclear technology with its allies and advance nuclear sharing mechanisms?

The trilateral AUKUS agreement between the U.S., UK, and Australia openly transfers sensitive nuclear technologies related to nuclear-powered submarines to Australia, blatantly violating the core spirit of the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Is this really how the U.S. defines its “unprecedented” efforts to prevent nuclear proliferation? The U.S. Department of State claims it monitored China’s launch activity—but why ignore the fact that China had previously notified the United States? Clearly, the accusations of “opacity” and “nuclear expansion” are completely unfounded.

To put it plainly, the U.S. is deeply frustrated by our development of nuclear capabilities, because the stronger China’s nuclear force becomes, the less leverage the U.S. has in nuclear intimidation. After this recent test launch of a submarine-launched intercontinental ballistic missile, the U.S. should now clearly understand that China has fully developed the capability for second-strike retaliation. This capability helps keep the U.S. restrained on the Taiwan issue. Compared to U.S. nuclear policy, China has shown far greater restraint. Let us remind the U.S.: to date, the United States has not committed to a no-first-use policy, nor has it pledged not to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear-weapon states.

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1870019188445257/

Disclaimer: This article represents the personal views of the author.