16:41 02-02-2026

Trump Signals Support for Nuclear Arms Limits, China Talks

whitehouse.gov

Donald Trump signals interest in keeping nuclear arms limits while seeking to include China in future talks, as uncertainty surrounds the fate of the US–Russia New START treaty.

The White House has signaled that President Donald Trump remains interested in preserving existing limits on nuclear weapons while pushing to bring China into arms control talks, the Financial Times reported, citing a U.S. official.

According to the official, Trump has repeatedly framed nuclear weapons as a global threat and has indicated a preference for keeping current restrictions in place rather than dismantling them outright. At the same time, he has argued that any future framework for arms control should not be limited to Washington and Moscow, but should also include Beijing.

The Financial Times notes, however, that Trump is known for making key decisions at the last moment, leaving room for uncertainty over the final outcome. Against this backdrop, the newspaper does not rule out that the U.S. president could ultimately agree to maintain the country’s commitment to the Treaty on the Reduction of Strategic Offensive Arms (New START) between Russia and the United States.

Earlier, in an interview with The New York Times, Trump addressed the approaching expiration of the treaty and suggested that allowing it to lapse remained an option. At the same time, he indicated that he would prefer to negotiate a new, more advantageous agreement-one that would explicitly involve China alongside the two traditional nuclear powers.