President Donald Trump has announced that he has formally directed the United States Department of Defense, specifically the Pentagon, to commence immediate preparations for new nuclear weapons testing. He justified this directive by emphasizing what he described as the necessity of ensuring that the United States remains aligned with and not surpassed by the nuclear testing initiatives of other nations. Trump conveyed this message through a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, where he briefly outlined his stance but refrained from offering substantive technical details regarding the exact scope or nature of the planned tests. He nonetheless declared that the “process will begin immediately,” indicating an intent for swift action by the relevant military and scientific authorities.
Although the president’s statement left room for considerable ambiguity, observers noted that it does not clearly specify whether the instruction pertains to the resumption of explosive detonations of nuclear warheads—tests historically carried out underground—or to the evaluation of delivery mechanisms and systems designed to transport such weapons. This uncertainty adds complexity to interpreting the announcement, given the considerable legal, environmental, and diplomatic ramifications associated with either form of testing.
The comments emerged at a particularly sensitive moment in U.S. foreign relations, arriving just before Trump’s much-anticipated meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. That encounter ultimately led to an agreement that reduced tariffs on Chinese imports, signaling a modest thaw in the economic tensions between the two superpowers. Against this diplomatic backdrop, Trump’s call for a return to nuclear testing appeared to represent a dramatic departure from the consistent nuclear restraint that had characterized U.S. policy across multiple administrations. Indeed, the last confirmed American nuclear weapons test occurred in 1992, during the final months of President George H. W. Bush’s tenure, after which a unilateral moratorium was introduced as the Cold War drew to a close. That decision not only halted explosive testing but also became a symbolic commitment to a more cooperative era of nonproliferation and arms control.
Trump’s social media post was further criticized for containing factual inaccuracies and misleading claims. Contrary to his implication that the United States maintains the world’s dominant nuclear arsenal, official international data indicate that Russia currently possesses the largest stockpile of nuclear warheads. Moreover, according to information verified by the United Nations, no nation other than North Korea has conducted a confirmed nuclear weapons test since the 1990s—a period that marked a broad global consensus toward restraint in such activities. Finally, while the United States has signed the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, which prohibits all nuclear explosions for either civilian or military purposes, it has yet to ratify that treaty, meaning it is bound politically but not legally under international law. Still, the reinitiation of any form of testing would stand in stark contrast to the commitments and norms that have governed global nuclear conduct for decades, signaling a potentially profound shift in both American policy and the worldwide arms control landscape.
Sourse: https://www.theverge.com/news/809845/trump-us-restart-nuclear-weapons-tests
