Overview
- Trump posted the order minutes before meeting China’s Xi Jinping in Busan, saying the U.S. would test on an “equal basis” with other powers and citing Russian and Chinese advances.
- Russia said its recent Burevestnik missile and Poseidon drone trials were not nuclear explosive tests, and China urged Washington to honor the global nuclear testing ban.
- Experts and advocates warned that resuming underground detonations would likely take years—Daryl Kimball estimated at least 36 months—and could spur reciprocal testing by rivals.
- The Pentagon and Department of Energy offered no immediate details, while Nevada Rep. Dina Titus and Sen. Jacky Rosen signaled opposition to any explosive testing at the Nevada site.
- The U.S. last conducted a nuclear explosive test in 1992; Trump’s claim that America has the largest arsenal conflicts with SIPRI’s estimates showing Russia with more total warheads.