U.S. President Donald Trump stated on Wednesday night that he has directed the U.S. Department of War, his rebrand of the U.S. Department of Defense, to begin testing nuclear weapons “immediately,” after Russia and China have conducted recent tests.
“The United States has more nuclear weapons than any other country. This was accomplished, including a complete update and renovation of existing weapons, during my first term in office,” Trump said. “Because of the tremendous destructive power, I hated to do it, but had no choice.”
Trump said that Russia is second and China a “distant third,” but that it would be “even within five years.”
“Because of other countries’ testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our nuclear weapons on an equal basis,” the president said. “That process will begin immediately.”
Washington reportedly last tested a nuke more than 30 years ago, on Sept. 23, 1992, in Nevada.
Andrea Stricker, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and deputy director of its nonproliferation and biodefense program, stated that it was “important for the president to clarify what he means.”
“He may authorize low-yield nuclear testing, as Russia and China may be conducting, rather than full-scale tests as noted by ‘on an equal basis,’” she stated. “Trump may also be attempting to pull Russia and China into arms control measures, since New START expires in February and China is set to expand to 1,500 nukes or more by 2035. Will this work if Beijing seeks a reason to conduct tests?”
The New START Treaty, which will expire on Feb. 4, “enhances U.S. national security by placing verifiable limits on all Russian deployed intercontinental-range nuclear weapons,” according to the U.S. State Department.
“Bottom line: relative post-Cold War nuclear restraint is well on its way out the door in the face of competition with the axis of aggressors,” Stricker stated.
Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nev.) shared Trump’s statement on social media. “Absolutely not. I’ll be introducing legislation to put a stop to this,” she wrote.
