Trump Gives Green Light to Pentagon to 'Immediately Begin' Nuclear Weapons Testing

US President Donald Trump instructed the Pentagon (which he referred to as the Department of War) to immediately begin nuclear weapons testing with other nations, just hours before his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea.

Decision to Resume Nuclear Testing

• Trump's Directive: Trump stated on Truth Social: "Because of testing programs being conducted by other countries, I have instructed the Department of Defense to begin testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis." He added: "This process will begin immediately."

• US Testing Halt: According to NBC News, the last confirmed US nuclear test was in 1992, when President George H.W. Bush announced a voluntary moratorium on underground nuclear testing. The US maintains the capability to resume testing at a federal site in Nevada.

• Goal of Parity: Trump stated the decision to resume testing aims to achieve parity with Moscow and Beijing.

Nuclear Power Balance and Tension with Putin

• Trump on the Arsenal: Trump wrote that "the United States has more Nuclear Weapons than any other country—Russia is second, and China is a distant third—but they will be equal to us within 5 years."

• International Organization Estimates:

  • The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) ranks Russia as having the largest confirmed number of nuclear weapons (5,449) compared to the US (5,277). Together, the two countries possess about 90% of all nuclear weapons.

  • The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) estimated this year that the US possesses 3,700 nuclear warheads, Russia 4,309, and China at least 600, increasing by about 100 warheads annually since 2023.

• Russian Criticism: Trump criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin for testing a nuclear-powered cruise missile with "unlimited range," describing it as a unique weapon. Trump said he does not believe it is "appropriate" for Putin to test such weapons, urging him instead to end the "war that was supposed to last one week, and is now nearly in its fourth year."

• China and Russia's Testing: China's last known nuclear weapon test was in 1996. Russia's most recent weapon testing did not involve the detonation of a nuclear weapon, but focused on launch technology.