Trump’s Bold Call to Resume Nuclear Testing: A Risky Revival After 33 Years?
In a stunning announcement from Air Force One, President Donald Trump declared the U.S. will restart nuclear weapons testing for the first time since 1992, citing rivals’ activities as justification. This move, dropped amid tense Asia diplomacy, has ignited fears of a renewed global arms race and shattered decades of restraint.
Trump’s directive, posted on Truth Social and echoed to reporters en route from a meeting with China’s Xi Jinping, instructs the Pentagon—referred to as the “Department of War”—to begin immediately. “Because of other countries’ testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis,” he wrote. The timing couldn’t be more charged: It follows Russia’s recent tests of a nuclear-powered missile and underwater drone, which Putin claims aren’t explosive but have rattled Washington.
The U.S. has adhered to a voluntary moratorium on explosive nuclear tests since the Cold War’s end, relying instead on computer simulations and subcritical experiments at labs like Los Alamos. The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), signed in 1996 but unratified by the Senate, bans all detonations—a norm Trump appears ready to upend. Experts warn that full resumption could take 18 to 36 months, involving massive infrastructure revival at Nevada’s Test Site, where over 900 blasts scarred the desert from 1951 to 1992.
Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, called the order “misinformed and out of touch,” stressing the U.S. has “no technical, military, or political reason” for explosive tests. Jeffrey Lewis, a nonproliferation expert at the Middlebury Institute, added that it would mainly aid adversaries like Russia and China in refining their arsenals, while eroding U.S. credibility on global disarmament. Vice President JD Vance defended it as routine maintenance to ensure the arsenal’s reliability, though he dodged questions on “equal basis” escalation.
Public backlash is swift. Nevada Rep. Dina Titus, a Democrat, vowed legislation to block it, citing seismic risks to Las Vegas high-rises not built for blasts. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries labeled it a “massive breach” of international norms, potentially unraveling the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. Internationally, Russia’s Kremlin warned of “chaos,” while allies like Japan—survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki—expressed deep alarm over renewed testing’s shadow.
For everyday Americans, the stakes hit close to home. Politically, it fractures bipartisan support for arms control, with the New START treaty expiring soon and no replacement in sight—heightening doomsday risks. Economically, restarting could cost billions: Reviving Nevada facilities alone might exceed $1 billion annually, diverting funds from infrastructure or healthcare amid inflation woes. In lifestyle terms, Nevada residents fear radiation spikes and quakes disrupting tourism hubs like the Strip. Technologically, while it might spur defense jobs in Albuquerque or Livermore, it risks isolating U.S. innovators from global clean-energy pacts tied to nonproliferation.
Trump’s Trump nuclear testing gambit, alongside US nuclear weapons policy shifts, echoes his first-term pushes but lands in a hotter climate. As nuclear arms race whispers grow and CTBT violation debates rage, Nevada nuclear tests could redefine deterrence—or disaster. The White House promises site details soon, but with Congress eyeing overrides and adversaries watching, this could reshape alliances before year’s end.
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