China says it is transparent about nuclear weapons

BEIJING — China said Tuesday that it is completely transparent about its nuclear arsenal and dismissed a call by Japan for more information ahead of a visit by the Japanese prime minister.

China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu told reporters China supports international nuclear disarmament efforts and had made “unremitting efforts” for a ban of nuclear weapons.

“China’s nuclear strategy and policies are very clear and completely transparent. The accusations of the Japanese side in this regard are completely groundless,” Jiang told a news conference.

China’s annual double-digit percentage increases in military spending have rattled its Asian neighbors, and Washington has warned Beijing’s failure to clearly declare its intentions could prompt further unease.

Japan’s Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone criticized Beijing on Monday for withholding information about its nuclear weapons and urged greater transparency.

“China continues to modernize its nuclear arsenals but has not undertaken any nuclear arms reductions,” he said at a Tokyo hotel to outline a Japanese initiative for global nuclear disarmament. “Nor does the country disclose any information on its nuclear arsenals.”

China exploded its first nuclear weapon in 1964, but the exact size of its arsenal is unknown.

Japan, the only country to suffer atomic attacks at the end of World War II, supports President Barack Obama’s speech at the beginning of April mapping out his vision to achieve a world without atomic weapons, Nakasone said.

Beijing says its nuclear weapons development is for defense only.

Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso arrives in Beijing on Wednesday for a two-day official visit to focus on strengthening political trust and cooperating to overcome the financial crisis, spokeswoman Jiang said. The crisis has hit Japan particularly hard, with its economy likely to shrink 3.3 percent this fiscal year, its worst contraction since World War II.