US will resume testing nuclear weapons for first time in 30 years, Trump says

US President Donald Trump on Thursday announced the US will resume testing nuclear weapons for the first time in three decades, saying it would be on an “equal basis” with Russia and China.

"Now is the appropriate time," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Washington shortly after a meeting with China's president Xi Jinping in South Korea.

Trump first announced it on social media ahead of his meeting with Xi, stressing that "it had to do with others."

“Because of other countries' testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our nuclear weapons on an equal basis,” he said in a post on Truth Social. “That process will begin immediately.”

The White House did not immediately respond to questions seeking more details, nor did Pentagon officials offer immediate clarity about Trump's announcement on the nuclear missile tests.

Is the nuclear arms race back?

Trump's astonishing announcement comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin this week announced that Moscow tested a new atomic-powered and nuclear-capable underwater drone and a new nuclear-powered cruise missile.

Putin did not announce any tests of Russia’s nuclear weapons, the last test of which occurred in 1990.

Also, ahead of the US leader's trip to South Korea, the final leg of his Asian tour, North Korea announced missile testing of what it claimed to be a 'sea-to-surface' missile weapon.

Last week, Pyongyang's leader Kim Jong-un unveiled some of his military's newest weapons, including what appeared to be a short-range ballistic system fitted with hypersonic glide vehicles.

While Trump did not specifically mention any of these in his post, including Russian tests, the US leader alluded to the nuclear stockpiles controlled by both Xi and Putin, saying, “Russia is second, and China is a distant third but will be even within 5 years.”

In 2023, Putin signed a bill revoking Russia’s ratification of a global nuclear test ban, which Moscow said was needed to put Russia on par with the US.

The Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, signed by then US President Bill Clinton but never ratified by the Senate, was adopted in 1996 and prohibits all nuclear explosions worldwide.

In 2023 Russia said it would only resume tests of its nuclear weapons if Washington did it first.