China could have as many ICBMs as U.S. or Russia by turn of decade: think tank

Subject : Science and technology

Section: Defence

Concept :

The nine nuclear-armed states, including the US, Russia, the UK, France, China, India and Pakistan, continue to modernise their nuclear arsenals, leading Swedish think-tank SIPRI said on Monday.
Several nuclear-armed states deployed new nuclear-armed or nuclear-capable weapon systems in 2022, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said in its yearbook.

What are ICBMs?

An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a missile with a minimum range of 5,500 kilometres primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery.
Conventional, chemical and biological weapons can also be delivered with varying effectiveness, but have never been deployed on ICBMs.

Important International Convention

ICBMs are differentiated by having greater range and speed than other ballistic missiles.
The International Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation (ICOC), now known as The Hague Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation (HCOC), is a political initiative aimed at globally curbing ballistic missile proliferation.
India is a signatory to this convention.
Established in April 1987, the voluntary Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) aims to limit the spread of ballistic missiles and other unmanned delivery systems that could be used for chemical, biological, and nuclear attacks.
India has joined the MTCR in 2016.

Countries that have ICBMs:

India, Russia, the United States, North Korea, China, Israel, the United Kingdom, and France.