Trump Orders Pentagon To Immediately Begin Testing Nuclear Weapons For First Time Since 1992

Donald Trump has ordered the Pentagon to immediately resume testing nuclear weapons for the first time in 33 years.

“Because of other countries’ testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“That process will begin immediately.”

Donald Trump ordered the Pentagon to resume nuclear weapons tests

Former President Trump speaking at a podium during an announcement about nuclear weapons testing orders from the Pentagon.

Image credits: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

The announcement comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow had successfully tested Poseidon, an underwater nuclear-powered drone.

Poseidon, known as Kanyon in NATO, was reportedly designed to target coastal areas and create a radioactive tsunami.

According to Putin, the weapon can’t be intercepted, and it is unmatched in speed and depth.

On Wednesday, he told soldiers wounded in Ukraine that Poseidon is powered by a nuclear reactor “100 times smaller” than those on submarines and claimed its power is “significantly higher than that of our prospective Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile.”

A man in a dark suit studying a document with a pen, symbolizing nuclear weapons testing and Pentagon orders.

Image credits: Contributor/Getty Images

He also referenced the Burevestnik cruise missile, which Moscow tested on October 21, saying its nuclear reactor is “1,000 times smaller” than a submarine’s.

Following Putin’s claims, Trump said the U.S. must catch up to Moscow and China when it comes to nuclear might.

The U.S. has voluntarily observed a testing moratorium as a commitment to non-proliferation, conducting no nuclear tests since 1992.

Trump will no longer observe this commitment, writing on Truth Social: “The United States has more Nuclear Weapons than any other country.

Trump cited Russia and China in his post

Screenshot of a Trump tweet ordering the Pentagon to begin testing nuclear weapons immediately for the first time since 1992.

Image credits: Donald J Trump

“This was accomplished, including a complete update and renovation of existing weapons, during my First Term in office.

“Because of the tremendous destructive power, I HATED to do it, but had no choice! Russia is second, and China is a distant third, but will be even within 5 years.”

China conducted its last known nuclear test in 1996, but is suspected of having carried out secret low-grade weapons tests in recent years.

Russia has not carried out any confirmed nuclear tests since 1990, but withdrew from its ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) in 2023.

While the U.S. and China signed the CTBT, neither ratified it.

Moscow at the time said it would abide by the treaty’s testing ban, unless Washington resumes testing first.

The Arms Control Association has accused Trump of “foolishly” resuming nuclear testing, while being “misinformed” and “out of touch.”

Man in suit sitting in a meeting room, focused and contemplative, related to nuclear weapons testing and Pentagon orders.

Image credits: Lintao Zhang/Getty Images

“Trump is misinformed and out of touch. The U.S. has no technical, military, or political reason to resume nuclear explosive testing for the first time since 1992,” director Daryl Kimball wrote on X.

“It would take at least 36 months to resume contained nuclear tests underground at the former test site in Nevada.

“Nearly all the world’s nations have joined the 1996 Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, which, as a signatory, the United States is legally obligated to respect. No country except North Korea has conducted a nuclear test explosion in this century.

“By foolishly announcing his intention to resume nuclear testing, Trump will trigger strong public opposition in Nevada, from all U.S. allies, and it could trigger a chain reaction of nuclear testing by U.S. adversaries, and blow apart the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.”

Trump’s announcement on nuclear weapons came ahead of his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea during his diplomatic Asia trip.

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