As China continues to rapidly increase its nuclear arsenal, the United States and its allies are exercising strategic response options. But ultimately, it’s imperative that China curb its nuclear buildup to avoid an unwinnable three-way arms race.

The DPRK places Northeast Asia at risk, and their current military trajectory could pose problems for the PRC as well as the U.S. and its allies. So despite their fundamental differences, it’s in the best interests of both Washington and Beijing to find opportunities to cooperate to promote regional stability.

The raging Russia-Ukraine conflict is a stark reminder of the urgency of effective management of weapons of mass destruction. The international community must come together to restart the long-stalled international negotiations over arms control and nuclear disarmament by fully utilizing the existing mechanisms and platforms and generating greater consensus and impetus among all stakeholders. A staunch supporter of the international arms control and nuclear disarmament regime, China adheres to its longstanding nuclear policy of maximum restraint and remains committed to the pursuit of a new path leading to a world of enduring peace and stability.

With America distracted by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the ICBM on the Korean Peninsula is not getting much attention. But the problem won’t go away without judicious action on both sides.

The Russia-Ukraine conflict raises uncertainties in negotiations for a renewed Iran nuclear deal. Thorny problems remain. But while there are negatives, there are also opportunities.

With the United States maintaining a hostile stance, the DPRK faces a bleak choice: either capitulate to U.S. nuclear and missile demands or try to unnerve the U.S. with a show of force. It is likely to try the latter first.

Speaking with a common voice, the nuclear powerhouses have created a possible new starting point from which they can reconfigure their relationships, enhance global strategic stability and avoid war.

China and the United States should cooperate to remove the fundamental causes of failure — lack of trust, differing definitions of denuclearization, timetables and peace mechanisms — while accounting for the DPRK’s wariness of the so-called Libya model.

The United States and other nuclear powers are part of the problem. But they can also be part of the solution. The existing nuclear order isn’t perfect, but no country can afford to let it fall apart. Now is the time to act.

If the United States is serious, it can begin by trying to establish basic trust through the removal of some sanctions. It can also push off to the future its demand to consider other issues beyond the JCPOA, which only complicate matters at this stage.