The Pentagon on Wednesday sharply increased its estimate of China’s projected nuclear weapons arsenal over the coming years, saying Beijing could have 700 warheads by 2027 and possibly 1,000 by 2030.

While the numbers would still be significantly smaller than the current US nuclear stockpile, they represent a significant change in the US projection from just last year, when the Pentagon warned the Chinese arsenal would top 400 by the end of the decade.

In its wide-ranging annual report to Congress on China’s military, the Pentagon reiterated concern about increasing pressure on self-ruled Taiwan.

But the report put particular emphasis on China’s growing nuclear arsenal.

“Over the next decade, the PRC aims to modernise, diversify, and expand its nuclear forces,” the report said, referring to the People’s Republic of China.