Details Emerge About Alleged China’s Nuclear Test in 2020

On Tuesday night, a senior U.S. official provided new insights regarding China’s suspected nuclear bomb test from June 2020.

During an event at the Hudson Institute in Washington, D.C., Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Yeo stated that seismic evidence from a monitoring station in Kazakhstan indicated an explosion of magnitude 2.75 took place at China’s Lop Nur testing site on June 22, 2020.

“Since that time, we have examined additional data. It’s highly unlikely that it was anything other than an explosion, a unique explosion,” Yeo noted, emphasizing that the findings didn’t align with characteristics typical of a mine blast.

“Moreover, it does not resemble an earthquake whatsoever,” he remarked. “That’s… what you would anticipate from a nuclear explosion test.”

The Chinese embassy in Washington dismissed the Trump administration’s assertions, characterizing the claims as “political manipulation” and arguing that the U.S. was neglecting its own responsibilities regarding nuclear disarmament.

“China calls on the United States to reaffirm commitments made by the five nuclear-armed nations to refrain from nuclear testing, uphold the global treaty against nuclear tests, and actively support international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation,” spokesperson Liu Pengyu told a news outlet.

U.S. officials have also warned that China might be gearing up for a test with a potential yield of “hundreds of tons,” which underscores China’s rapidly advancing nuclear capabilities and complicates the prospect of engaging Beijing in arms control discussions.

Moreover, with the expiration of the U.S.-Russia nuclear treaty, there is growing concern about entering an unpredictable phase that could spark one of the most accelerated arms races in history.

Thomas DiNanno, Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, recently stated that the U.S. possesses evidence supporting the claim that China executed an explosive nuclear test at the Lop Nur facility.

“I can definitively say, the U.S. government is aware that China has undertaken nuclear explosion tests, including preparations for tests with specified yields in the hundreds of tons,” DiNanno remarked during the United Nations Conference on Disarmament.

He reiterated, “China performed one nuclear test of this sort on June 22, 2020.”

DiNanno further accused the Chinese government of employing “decoupling,” which involves utilizing explosive devices in ways that minimize seismic signals, allowing them to obscure their activities.

China’s Foreign Ministry refuted these claims, asserting that the United States was politicizing the nuclear issue while maintaining that China has a voluntary moratorium on nuclear testing.

The situation has raised further questions about the adequacy of the U.S. stockpile management program, which relies on meticulous verification, deterrence, and advanced simulations instead of live detonations, especially in this new era of major power nuclear rivalry.