Donald Trump announced the resumption of nuclear weapons tests just minutes before meeting Xi Jinping.Image: keystone
US President Donald Trump has announced the immediate start of new nuclear weapons tests. In doing so, he is stoking fears of a resurgence of the Cold War.
October 30, 2025, 06:25October 30, 2025, 06:33
He justified the measure in a post on the Truth Social platform with the test programs of other countries. Trump further wrote that he had instructed the Defense Department, which was recently renamed the Department of War, to carry out tests “on the same basis.”
What type of tests this should be and which weapons should be tested initially remained open. If the USA actually carries out nuclear weapons tests again for the first time in more than 30 years, other nuclear powers could also dare to take cover.
The US president’s announcement came just before a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea. During the meeting, Trump did not answer a question from reporters about the announced nuclear weapons tests. The USA and China, like Russia, are established nuclear powers, as are Great Britain and France.
Last US nuclear test in 1992
The last U.S. nuclear test to date was carried out on September 23, 1992 at the site now known as the Nevada National Security Site. In the same year, then US President George HW Bush announced a moratorium on underground nuclear tests.
However, the US has the option to resume testing at the same site. According to the US Congressional Research Service, the president has the authority to authorize a nuclear weapons test under certain conditions.
Immediately after the Republican’s announcement, initial resistance arose in the US Parliament. «Absolutely not. I will introduce legislation to put an end to this,” Nevada Democratic Congresswoman Dina Titus wrote on Platform X.
Russia tested long-range nuclear missile
Just a few days ago, Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin declared that the test of the Burevestnik long-range nuclear missile had been successful. According to Russian information, it was tested during a recent exercise by Russian nuclear forces on October 21st. At a meeting with the Russian General Staff, Putin emphasized the military strength of Russia’s nuclear power. However, the Russian test was a test of a new delivery system, not a test of a nuclear weapon. Western experts were skeptical about the usefulness of the rocket.
There’s more about it here:
Disarmament treaty expires
The New Start nuclear disarmament treaty, the last major arms control agreement between the USA and Russia, expires in February 2026. There are currently no clear negotiations about a succession plan. The Kremlin recently said it would be impossible to renegotiate. This is practically not possible in terms of time, said a spokesman.
The New Start contract was concluded in 2010 and was last extended for five years in 2021. It envisages a reduction in nuclear warheads and delivery systems.
Trump claimed in his post on Truth Social that the US has more nuclear weapons than any other country. However, according to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), Russia currently has the most confirmed nuclear weapons – over 5,500 warheads – while the USA has 5,044 nuclear weapons. The USA is investing billions of dollars in modernizing its nuclear arsenal.
In addition to the five permanent members of the UN Security Council as established nuclear powers, according to the peace research institute Sipri, there are four other states that have nuclear weapons: India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel.
UN representative warns of risk of nuclear weapons use
According to the UN representative for disarmament, Izumi Nakamitsu, the risk of the use of nuclear weapons is higher than it has been since the Cold War. “It is remarkable how quickly we have forgotten the lessons of the Cold War,” she said in April.
“At no time since the height of the Cold War has the risk of using nuclear weapons been so high – and the mechanisms designed to prevent their use so fragile.”
According to information from the US Congress in the summer, an expert from the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the organization responsible for the security and effectiveness of the US nuclear arsenal, declared in 2024 that there was no technical necessity for nuclear tests. Analysts had expressed concerns, according to Congress, that NNSA’s development of new warhead designs could lead to calls for a resumption of nuclear weapons testing.
An international nuclear test ban treaty was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1996. The USA has not ratified the treaty. Russia then withdrew its ratification at the end of 2023. Both countries had not conducted nuclear weapons tests since the 1990s.
Nuclear weapons have only been used once in war
At the end of the Second World War, the USA dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima in 1945. A second bomb hit Nagasaki three days later. They were the first – and so far only – nuclear weapons attacks in the history of war.
It is estimated that more than 70,000 people died in one fell swoop in Hiroshima, and by the end of 1945 the number had already risen to 140,000. In Nagasaki, around 70,000 residents died by the end of the year. The exact number of victims will never be determined because many died from the long-term effects of the radiation.
Russia criticizes planned US missile defense system
According to media reports, the Kremlin recently criticized Trump’s push to develop a missile defense system called “Golden Dome”. Trump wants to build the system by the end of his term in office, modeled on Israel’s Iron Dome defense system. The planned “Golden Dome” is intended to go far beyond the existing US defense systems and would differ significantly from the Israeli model. (sda/dpa/con)