President Donald Trump has ordered the U.S. military to immediately resume nuclear weapons testing for the first time in more than three decades, citing the need to match rival powers Russia and China. The announcement came just minutes before Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Busan, South Korea.
In a post on Truth Social made while flying aboard Marine One, Trump said he had instructed the Pentagon to begin testing “on an equal basis” with other nuclear powers. “Because of other countries’ testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis. That process will begin immediately,” he wrote, adding that “Russia is second, and China is a distant third, but will be even within five years.”
Speaking later aboard Air Force One, Trump said testing was necessary to ensure the U.S. maintains strategic superiority. He dismissed fears of escalating global risk, saying the country’s nuclear stockpile was “well locked up,” though he added he remained open to future denuclearization talks with Moscow and Beijing.
The U.S. last conducted a nuclear test in 1992. Since then, most major powers — except North Korea — have halted explosive testing under global non-proliferation agreements. Trump did not specify whether the renewed program would involve underground detonations or missile flight tests.
The move follows an intensifying nuclear buildup by China, which has more than doubled its warheads to about 600 since 2020 and is expected to exceed 1,000 by 2030, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Russia, meanwhile, has showcased new capabilities — including tests of the Poseidon nuclear-powered torpedo and the Burevestnik cruise missile earlier this month.
Trump’s decision drew swift criticism at home. As reported in Reuters, representative Dina Titus, a Democrat from Nevada, said she would introduce legislation to block the move. Daryl Kimball, head of the Arms Control Association, warned that any U.S. test “could trigger a chain reaction of nuclear testing by U.S. adversaries, and blow apart the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.”
Experts also noted that even if approved, restarting underground testing could take up to three years to implement, given the need to restore dormant facilities in Nevada.
