President Donald Trump floated a joint meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, claiming he wants all countries to move toward denuclearization. (Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via Reuters)
Additionally, Trump said that he was aiming to schedule meetings with Xi and Putin early on in his second term and request that the countries cut their military budgets in half. The president said he believes "we can do that," and remained indifferent about whether he traveled to Xi or Putin, or if they visited the White House.
Meanwhile, the U.S. has dramatically reduced its nuclear arsenal since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
The U.S. maintains 3,748 nuclear warheads as of September 2023, a drop from the stockpile of 22,217 nuclear warheads in 1989, according to the Department of Energy. The agency reported the U.S. owned a maximum of 31,255 nuclear warheads in 1966.
In comparison, Russia has an estimated stockpile of roughly 4,380 nuclear warheads, while China boasts an arsenal of roughly 600, according to the Federation of American Scientists.
Trump said that he was aiming to schedule meetings with Xi and Putin early on in his second term and request that the countries cut their military budgets in half. (Xie Huanchi/Xinhua via Getty Images)
Trump also said on Thursday that Putin wants peace after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, comments that followed back-to-back calls with the Russian leader and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also traveled to Kyiv on Wednesday.
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Trump, who met with Zelenskyy in New York in September 2024, urged Putin to cease the war — or face sanctions — in a post on Truth Social on Jan. 22.
"Settle now, and STOP this ridiculous War! IT'S ONLY GOING TO GET WORSE," Trump wrote. If we don't make a 'deal', and soon, I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries."
Diana Stancy is a politics reporter with Fox News Digital covering the White House.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/no-reason-new-nukes-trump-floats-disarmament-talks-china-russia