SIPRI report highlights: India holds more nuclear weapons than Pakistan, China's arsenal also discussed
China's nuclear arsenal grew from 410 warheads in January 2023 to 500 in January 2024, according to the SIPRI assessment, and it is predicted to continue expanding.
PTC News Desk: According to a paper released on Monday by the Swedish think tank Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), China has increased its nuclear arsenal from 410 warheads in January 2023 to 500 by January 2024, while India now has more nuclear weapons than Pakistan.
China's nuclear arsenal grew from 410 warheads in January 2023 to 500 in January 2024, according to SIPRI's study, and it is predicted to continue expanding.
Key conclusions from the SIPRI report
1. Nine countries possessing nuclear weapons, namely the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea, and Israel, kept updating their nuclear arsenals, with a few of them introducing new nuclear-capable armaments in 2023.
2. In January of this year, India had 172 "stored" nuclear warheads, compared to 170 for Pakistan.
3. In 2023, India made a little addition to its nuclear arsenal, and Pakistan also kept working on developing new nuclear delivery systems.
4. While Pakistan continues to be the primary target of India's nuclear deterrence, the SIPRI assessment stated that India seems to be increasingly focusing on longer-range weapons, especially those that can reach targets all over China.
5. Almost all of the 2,100 deployed warheads—nearly all of which belonged to the US or Russia—were kept atop ballistic missiles in a condition of high operational alert. China, however, is thought to have placed certain warheads on high operational alert for the first time.
6. Together, the US and Russia are in possession of about 90% of all nuclear weapons.
7. According to the organisation, Russia is projected to have installed about 36 warheads with operational forces since January 2023.
8. China's nuclear warhead stockpile is predicted to remain far lower than either Russia's or the US's, according to the report.