China has announced that it will not participate in nuclear disarmament talks at this stage, despite calls from Germany for Beijing to join global arms control discussions. The statement came on Thursday following the expiration of the last active nuclear arms control treaty between the United States and Russia, which has raised fears of a renewed global arms race.

At a press conference in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said that China’s nuclear capabilities are fundamentally different from those of the United States and Russia. For that reason, he explained, China will not take part in nuclear disarmament negotiations at this time.

China’s position comes as international concern grows over the potential escalation of global weapons competition following the end of the U.S.-Russia START treaty, which had been the final functioning nuclear arms control agreement between the two powers.