China and weapons of mass destruction

The People's Republic of China has developed and possesses weapons of mass destruction, including chemical and nuclear weapons. The first of China's nuclear weapons tests took place in 1964, and its first hydrogen bomb test occurred in 1966 at Lop Nur. Tests continued until 1996, when the country signed the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), but did not ratify it. China acceded to the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) in 1984 and ratified the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in 1997.

People's Republic of China
First nuclear weapon testOctober 16, 1964
First thermonuclear weapon testDecember 28, 1966
Last nuclear testJuly 29, 1996
Largest yield test4 Mt
  • Atmospheric – 4 Mt (November 17, 1976)
  • Underground – 660~1,000 kt (May 21, 1992)
Current stockpile500
Current strategic arsenal438
Cumulative strategic arsenal in megatonnage294 megatons (2009 est.)
Maximum missile range15,000 km
NPT partyYes (1992, one of five recognized powers)
Weapons of mass destruction
By type
By country
Proliferation
Treaties
  • List of treaties (treaty parties)
  • Category

The number of nuclear warheads in China's arsenal is a state secret. There are varying estimates of the size of China's arsenal. The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists and Federation of American Scientists estimated in 2024 that China has a stockpile of approximately 438 nuclear warheads, while the United States Department of Defense put the estimate at more than 500 operational nuclear warheads, making it the third-largest in the world.

In 2011, the Chinese government published a military white paper, which repeated its nuclear policies of maintaining a minimum deterrent with a no-first-use pledge, though what "minimum deterrent posture" is unclear, and has been called into question.

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