Exclusive-China likely loaded more than 100 ICBMs in silo fields, Pentagon report says

By Idrees Ali

WASHINGTON, Dec 22 (Reuters) - China is likely to have loaded more than 100 intercontinental ballistic missiles across three silo fields and has no desire for arms control talks, according to a draft Pentagon report which highlighted Beijing's growing military ambitions.

China is expanding and modernizing its weapons stockpile faster than any other nuclear-armed power. Beijing has described reports of a military buildup as efforts to "smear and defame China and deliberately mislead the international community."

Last month, U.S. President Donald Trump said that he may be working on a plan to denuclearize with China and Russia. But the draft Pentagon report, which was seen by Reuters, said Beijing did not appear to be interested.

"We continue to see no appetite from Beijing for pursuing such measures or more comprehensive arms control discussions," the report said.

In particular, the report said that China had likely put in more than 100 solid-fuelled DF-31 ICBMs in silo fields close to China's border with Mongolia - the latest in a series of silo sites. The Pentagon had previously reported the existence of the fields but not the number of missiles loaded.

The Pentagon and China's embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The draft Pentagon report did not identify any potential target of the reported newly placed missiles. U.S. officials noted that the report could change before it was sent to lawmakers.

The report said China's nuclear warhead stockpile was still in the low 600s in 2024, which reflected "a slower rate of production when compared to previous years."

But the report added that China's nuclear expansion was ongoing and it was on track to have over 1,000 warheads by 2030.

China has said it adheres to a "nuclear strategy of self-defense and pursues a no-first-use policy."

Trump has said he wants the United States to resume nuclear weapons testing, but it is unclear what form that will take.

The wide-ranging Pentagon report detailed China's military build-up and said that "China expects to be able to fight and win a war on Taiwan by the end of 2027."

China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, has never renounced use of force to "reunify" with the island.

Beijing was refining its military options to take Taiwan by "brute force," the report said, adding that one option could include strikes 1,500-2,000 nautical miles from China.

"In sufficient volume, these strikes could seriously challenge and disrupt U.S. presence in or around a conflict in the Asia-Pacific region," it added.

(Reporting by Idrees Ali; editing by Philippa Fletcher)