'No choice but to expand': Trump announces resumption of US nuclear tests after 33 years

In a dramatic shift from decades of nuclear restraint, US President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced that the United States will resume testing nuclear weapons “immediately,” ending a 33-year-long moratorium.

Hours before his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea, Trump posted on Truth Social, “Because of other countries’ testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis.” “That process will begin immediately,” he added.

'No choice but to expand arsenal'

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Trump claimed the United States possesses more nuclear weapons than any other nation, citing a “complete update and renovation” of existing warheads during his first term. “I have no choice but to expand our nuclear arsenal, although I hate it,” Trump wrote, adding, “Russia is second, and China is a distant third, but will be even within five years.”

The United States last conducted a nuclear test in 1992. Since then, nuclear scientists have relied on advanced simulations rather than physical detonations to ensure the reliability of the stockpile.

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Possible trigger: Putin’s recent nuclear boasts

Analysts believe Trump’s announcement may have been provoked by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recent claims of testing new nuclear-powered delivery systems. Earlier this week, Putin boasted that Russia had tested a nuclear-powered underwater drone, Poseidon, allegedly capable of triggering massive tsunami-like destruction.

“There is nothing like this in the world in terms of speed and depth,” Putin said on Wednesday, asserting that the drone could reach the US West Coast undetected, foreign media reported.

Putin also announced the testing of a nuclear-powered cruise missile on Sunday—though these were delivery systems, not actual nuclear warheads.

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Testing authority and treaty implications

While Trump’s statement referred to the “Department of War,” nuclear weapons themselves are built and tested under the Department of Energy. Experts say he may have been referring to delivery systems rather than the bombs themselves.

The US is not a signatory to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), which has yet to come into effect due to the absence of ratification by several nuclear-armed states, including India.

The announcement also comes as the New START Treaty—a key arms reduction pact limiting nuclear-armed intercontinental missiles—faces expiry on February 5. The treaty, signed between the US and Russia, restricts each side to 700 deployed launchers and 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads. Putin has suggested extending it for another year while negotiating a replacement, but Washington’s latest stance could complicate those efforts.

The last US nuclear test took place in 1992, while Russia’s predecessor, the Soviet Union, conducted its final test in 1990. China’s last was in 1996, and both India and Pakistan carried out their most recent tests in 1998. Since then, only North Korea has conducted nuclear detonations—the latest in 2017.