Overview
- In a Security Council meeting, Putin directed foreign, defense and security agencies to gather information and submit proposals on preparing for tests.
- Defense Minister Andrei Belousov urged immediate preparations, saying Novaya Zemlya can host full-scale tests at short notice.
- The Kremlin says it awaits U.S. clarification, as Energy Secretary Chris Wright states the ordered activity involves nonnuclear system tests.
- Trump has publicly left open the possibility of explosive testing, while experts and a senior U.S. nominee say Russia and China have not conducted nuclear explosive tests.
- Navigational warnings point to a routine, unarmed Minuteman III flight from Vandenberg to Kwajalein this week, with no public evidence of any nuclear detonations.