U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned overnight against the accelerated military buildup in China, saying “The Chinese are undertaking the most rapid military buildup in human history.”
“A part of that is their expansion of their nuclear capability. So obviously we’re keeping an eye on that, and I think everybody is concerned about that,” he added.
Rubio’s statement came against the backdrop of an ongoing debate in Washington about resuming U.S. nuclear testing – for the first time since 1992 – in response to the military build-up by China, Russia and North Korea.
The statement was driven by three main factors:
The Pentagon’s 2025 report published earlier this month, which states that China is building more than 350 new silos for intercontinental ballistic missiles – more than any existing Russian stockpile.Recent satellite images released on November 8 indicate massive construction in the Gobi Desert, including underground infrastructure for storing nuclear warheads.A statement by Chinese President Xi Jinping on October 28, in which he called to prepare the military for any scenario by 2027 – a date repeatedly mentioned as a possible timeline for action against Taiwan.
International research institutes’ data also corroborate Rubio’s remarks. SIPRI’s 2025 report estimates that China’s number of nuclear warheads rose from 500 in 2024 to 600 in 2025 – an unprecedented annual increase for a nuclear state.
