‘Extremely Dangerous for Humanity’: Trump Orders Resumption of US Nuclear Weapons Testing

“By foolishly announcing his intention resume nuclear testing,” said one expert, “Trump will trigger strong public opposition in Nevada, from all U.S. allies, and it could trigger a chain reaction.”

By Jake Johnson

US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he has ordered the Pentagon to resume nuclear weapons testing, an announcement made in a frighteningly vague social media post that threatens to shred decades of global progress and heighten tensions with China and Russia.

Trump mentioned both of those nations in his post, which was published to Truth Social just ahead of the US president’s meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping.

“The United States has more Nuclear Weapons than any other country,” Trump wrote, inaccurately. “Because of other countries testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis.”

Experts and nuclear nonproliferation advocates quickly began trying to parse Trump’s statement and determine its implications for the global arms race. It’s unclear from Trump’s post whether he intends to resume explosive nuclear tests—the last of which was conducted underground in Nevada in 1992.

Beatrice Fihn, former executive director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, warned that jumpstarting nuke tests would be “incredibly stupid” and pointed to the 1996 Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, which the US signed but never ratified.

“This would have real, devastating impact for Americans,” Fihn said of explosive nuclear testing. “It will harm, kill, and poison people. It has been estimated that past US nuclear testing killed as many Americans as its bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki did.”

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Trump nuclear test threat risks escalating tensions with China: NYT

US President Donald Trump’s recent remarks suggesting a resumption of nuclear weapons testing have reignited tensions between Washington and Beijing, the New York Times‘ China correspondent Chris Buckley writes, as concerns mount over a deepening nuclear arms rivalry.

Speaking shortly before a scheduled engagement with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump declared: “Because of other countries’ testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our nuclear weapons on an equal basis.”

Although he later stated that the comment was not specifically aimed at China, Buckley writes that experts warn the rhetoric could have significant implications for US nuclear policy and global nonproliferation efforts.

Trump’s statement came days after Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that Moscow had successfully tested a nuclear-capable cruise missile, although without an actual detonation. While Trump’s intent may have been limited to testing delivery systems, the New York Times’ writer says analysts believe his words could be interpreted as signaling a broader shift.

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Russia to ‘respond in kind’ to any breach of nuclear test moratorium — Kremlin

MOSCOW, October 30. /TASS/. Russia is closely monitoring potential violations of the international moratorium on nuclear testing and will respond accordingly if such actions occur, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said at a briefing, commenting on US President Donald Trump’s directive to the Pentagon to conduct nuclear weapons tests.

“The United States is a sovereign nation and has the right to make sovereign decisions,” Peskov noted. “However, I would like to recall President [Vladimir] Putin’s repeatedly stated position: if anyone breaks the moratorium, Russia will respond in kind.”

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Earlier, the US leader said that he had instructed the Pentagon to immediately resume nuclear weapons testing. However, he did not specify what kind of testing he was referring to, and whether this included detonating nuclear warheads.

Published at tass.com

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