China said Friday that the United States should take the lead in the reduction of nuclear weapons and military spending, after President Trump proposed working with China and Russia on these issues.
Mr. Trump had told reporters on Thursday in the Oval Office that he would like to hold talks with both China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia about “slowing down, stopping and reducing nuclear weapons.”
“There’s no reason for us to be building brand-new nuclear weapons,” he said. “We already have so many you can destroy the world 50 times over, 100 times over.” He also said he would urge the countries to commit to slashing their respective military budgets by half.
In response, Guo Jiakun, a spokesman for China’s foreign ministry, depicted China as a much smaller player among nuclear powers, compared to the United States.
“As countries with the largest nuclear arsenals, the United States and Russia should earnestly fulfill their special priority responsibilities for nuclear disarmament,” Mr. Guo said at a regular news briefing.
Mr. Guo noted that the United States had the largest military budget in the world, and, therefore, “should set an example in reducing military expenditure.”
