The Pentagon fears that the delivery of Russian nuclear fuel to China could be the start of a new arms race. writes about it Bloomberg Citing sources at the US Department of Defense.
According to the agency, between September and December 2022, Russia shipped 25,000 kg of enriched uranium to China.
It is reported that Russia has transferred more enriched uranium to China for the CFR-600 reactor than the US and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have captured worldwide in the last 30 years.
The Pentagon report indicates that in 2023, the CFR-600 will begin producing weapons-grade plutonium. This will allow China to catch up with the Russian Federation and the USA in nuclear arsenals.
The US Department of Defense concluded that the Russian Federation’s withdrawal from the Strategic Offensive Weapons Treaty with the US is related to the increased nuclear potential of China.
Since 2017, China has not informed the IAEA about its plutonium stockpiles. According to Bloomberg, on December 12, 2022, Rosatom supplied 6,477 kg of enriched uranium to the Chinese side.
Last November, the Chinese nuclear company CNNC’s has been finalized Eight deals with Rosatom and other companies for $572 million at the V China International Imported Goods Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai.