Trump to Seek Reductions in Military Spending, Pursue Denuclearization Talks with Russia and China
In his first presidential term, Trump attempted to negotiate a nuclear arms control deal with Russia and China and continues to have an interest in reducing mutual arms.
On Feb. 13, President Donald Trump expressed his desire to bring China and Russia to the negotiation table to cut down on their military spending, possibly reducing their nuclear arsenals as well.
During a White House press briefing, Trump highlighted the excessive military expenditures of the United States, China, and Russia, stating that he plans to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin to propose a 50% reduction in military budgets for all three countries, with a particular focus on nuclear arms reductions.
The president emphasized his concerns about the unnecessary development of new nuclear weapons when there are already more than enough to potentially destroy the world dozens of times over.
Regarding China’s increasing nuclear capabilities, Trump mentioned the possibility of China matching the nuclear arsenal sizes of Russia and the United States in the near future.
Trump’s vision involves redirecting the funds saved from military budget reductions towards more productive endeavors rather than continuing to stockpile arms that could lead to catastrophic consequences if ever used.
Trump has been vocal about his aspirations for nuclear arms control agreements among the United States, Russia, and China, discussing past conversations he had with Putin and Xi on denuclearization.
Even in the absence of agreements with Russia and China, Trump has implemented measures to safeguard the United States and its allies from nuclear conflicts, as evidenced by his executive order on Jan. 27 for the creation of an enhanced defense system known as the “Iron Dome for America.”
This initiative resembles past research and development efforts under the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) from the Reagan era, which led to discussions between Reagan and Gorbachev on reducing nuclear stockpiles.
Although the INF Treaty between the United States and Russia was terminated in 2019 during Trump’s term, Trump proposed a new trilateral arms control framework involving China, but no agreement was reached before the end of his first term.
