SIPRI Yearbook 2014
V. Chinese nuclear forces
China maintains an estimated total stockpile of about 250 nuclear warheads and is increasing its stockpile slightly and slowly.1 It is widely believed that in peacetime China stores its nuclear warheads in storage facilities separate from their delivery vehicles and that they are not ready for immediate launch.2 Of its planned triad of land, air and maritime nuclear forces, only the land-based ballistic missiles and nuclear-configured aircraft are currently considered operational: about 180 warheads are assigned to these forces. None are deployed on delivery systems—instead, they are thought to be in central storage. The remaining warheads are assigned to non-operational forces, including new systems that are under development, operational systems that will increase in number in the future and spares (see table 6.6).
- Citation (MLA):
- Kile, Shannon N., Hans M. Kristensen, Phillip Patton Schell, Alexander Glaser, Zia Mian, and Vitaly Fedchenko. "6 World Nuclear Forces." SIPRI Yearbook. SIPRI. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2016. Web. 29 Apr. 2025. <https://www.sipriyearbook.org/view/9780198712596/sipri-9780198712596-chapter-7-div1-6.xml>.
- Citation (APA):
- Kile, S., Kristensen, H., Patton Schell, P., Glaser, A., Mian, Z., & Fedchenko, V. (2016). 6 World Nuclear Forces. In SIPRI, SIPRI Yearbook 2014: Armaments, Disarmament and International Security. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Retrieved 29 Apr. 2025, from https://www.sipriyearbook.org/view/9780198712596/sipri-9780198712596-chapter-7-div1-6.xml
- Citation (Chicago):
- Kile, Shannon N., Hans M. Kristensen, Phillip Patton Schell, Alexander Glaser, Zia Mian, and Vitaly Fedchenko. "6 World Nuclear Forces." In SIPRI Yearbook 2014: Armaments, Disarmament and International Security, SIPRI. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016). Retrieved 29 Apr. 2025, from https://www.sipriyearbook.org/view/9780198712596/sipri-9780198712596-chapter-7-div1-6.xml
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