Trump Orders Pentagon to Immediately Resume U.S. Nuclear Weapons Testing After 33-Year Pause

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday ordered the Pentagon to immediately resume nuclear weapons testing—the first such move in 33 years—just minutes before his scheduled meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea.

Trump made the surprise announcement on Truth Social while aboard Marine One, en route to Busan for trade negotiations with Xi. In his post, he said he was directing the Department of War to begin testing the U.S. nuclear arsenal “on an equal footing” with other nuclear powers.

“Due to the testing programs of other countries,” Trump wrote, “I have ordered the Department of War to begin nuclear weapons testing on a reciprocal basis. This process will start immediately.”

He added, “Russia ranks second, and China is well behind in third—but they’ll catch up in five years.”

Testing sites to be determined later

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on his return to Washington, Trump said the decision was necessary to keep pace with rival nuclear powers.

“If others are testing, it only makes sense that we do the same,” he said, adding that the specific test sites would be announced later.

When asked if he believed the world was entering a more dangerous nuclear era, Trump dismissed the concern, saying the U.S. stockpile was “very secure,” before adding that he still supported denuclearization.

“I’d like to see denuclearization,” he said. “We have a lot—Russia is second, and China will catch up in four or five years. We’re actually talking to Russia about this, and if we do anything, China will be included.”

It was not immediately clear whether Trump was referring to nuclear explosive testing—which would fall under the National Nuclear Security Administration—or flight testing of nuclear-capable missiles.

China and Russia’s nuclear advances

Trump’s order follows China’s rapid expansion of its nuclear arsenal and Russia’s announcement earlier this week of successful tests of nuclear-capable cruise missiles and a nuclear-powered torpedo.

According to Washington’s Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Beijing has more than doubled its nuclear stockpile over the past five years—from about 300 warheads in 2020 to roughly 600 in 2025—and U.S. military officials expect China to surpass 1,000 warheads by 2030.

Russia, meanwhile, claims to have successfully tested the Poseidon nuclear-powered “super torpedo,” which military analysts say could unleash massive radioactive waves capable of devastating coastal cities.

The Arms Control Association estimates the United States currently holds about 5,225 nuclear warheads, compared with Russia’s 5,580.

Domestic and international backlash

Reaction to Trump’s announcement was swift.
Democratic Representative Dina Titus of Nevada posted on X, “I will introduce legislation to stop this.”

Arms Control Association Director Daryl Kimball said it would take the U.S. at least 36 months to resume underground nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site.

“Trump is misinformed and out of touch,” Kimball wrote on X. “There is no technical, military, or political justification for resuming explosive nuclear testing for the first time since 1992.”

He warned that Trump’s order could “set off a chain reaction” of new tests by rival nations and undermine the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

A return to a dangerous era

Analysts noted that a U.S. test could be interpreted by Moscow and Beijing as a deliberate show of force, likely prompting reciprocal tests. Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly said Moscow would respond in kind if Washington resumed testing.

Trump had previously said in August that he had discussed arms control with Putin and wanted China included in future agreements. Beijing has rejected such calls, saying it is “unrealistic” to expect China to join talks between the two largest nuclear powers given its much smaller arsenal.

The U.S. last conducted a nuclear explosive test in 1992, while most major powers halted such testing in the 1990s. North Korea remains the only nation to have tested since 2017.

The nuclear age began in July 1945, when the United States detonated a 20-kiloton atomic bomb in Alamogordo, New Mexico, before dropping two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, forcing Japan’s surrender in World War II.