China is outpacing the United States in its simulations of nuclear blasts, the South China Morning Post reported.
The country is on an aggressive pace at work on its new generation of nuclear weapons, with an average of 5 per month — the U.S. conducts fewer than one per month, on average, the report said.
Between Sept. 2014 and Dec. 2017, China carried out around 200 lab experiments to simulate the physics of a nuclear blast, while the U.S. only carried out 50 of those tests between 2012 and 2017, the report said.
Experts warn that pursuing more targeted nuclear weapons could lead to a higher risk for nuclear conflict. Pentagon officials have said the U.S. wants its enemies to believe it might use the weapons, which include smaller tactical warheads, the report said.
"The use of small warheads will lead to the use of bigger ones," said Beijing-based naval expert Li Jie, The Post reported.
"If other countries use nuclear weapons on us, we have to retaliate – this is probably why there is research to develop new weapons," the naval expert said, The Post reported.
China and Russia are the top threats to the U.S. national security, said James Clapper, a former director of national intelligence.
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