China likely loaded more than 100 ICBMs in silo fields, Pentagon report says

WASHINGTON — China is likely to have loaded more than 100 intercontinental ballistic missiles across its latest three silo fields and has no desire for arms control talks, according to a draft Pentagon report which highlighted Beijing's growing military ambitions. China is expanding and modernizing its weapons stockpile faster than any other nuclear-armed power, according to the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, a Chicago-based non-profit. Beijing has described reports of a military buildup as efforts to "smear and defame China and deliberately mislead the international community." Last month, U.S. President Donald Trump said that he may be working on a plan to denuclearize with China and Russia. But the draft Pentagon report, which was seen by Reuters, said Beijing did not appear to be interested. "We continue to see no appetite from Beijing for pursuing such measures or more comprehensive arms control discussions," the report said. In particular, the report said ‍that China had likely put in more than 100 solid-fuelled DF-31 ICBMs in silo fields close to China's border with Mongol