By Passman Akpos
Washington D.C— President Donald Trump sent shockwaves across the international community on Friday after announcing via social media that he had directed the Pentagon to “start testing nuclear weapons.”
The abrupt declaration, which came without prior notice to Congress or the public, has left U.S. officials scrambling to clarify the scope and intent of the order. It remains unclear whether the president was referring to testing nuclear delivery systems—such as missiles and bombers—or to ending the United States’ 33-year moratorium on explosive nuclear tests, which has been in place since 1992.
Experts warn that resuming physical detonation tests could have far-reaching global consequences. “If this means a return to live nuclear testing, it would represent a seismic shift in U.S. defense policy and could provoke dangerous escalation from nuclear-armed rivals like Russia and China,” said Dr. Helen Kraus, a non-proliferation specialist at the Brookings Institution.
The White House has yet to issue an official statement clarifying the president’s post, but Pentagon sources told reporters that no immediate preparations for nuclear testing had been ordered as of Friday morning.
International reaction was swift and critical. Several European allies expressed “deep concern” over the statement, while Chinese state media accused Washington of “recklessly destabilizing global security.”
The U.S. has not conducted a full-scale nuclear test since September 23, 1992, relying instead on computer simulations and subcritical experiments to maintain its arsenal under the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), which it signed but never ratified.
If implemented, Trump’s directive would effectively end decades of global consensus against nuclear testing—reviving Cold War tensions and potentially triggering a new arms race.
Analysts say the coming days will determine whether the president’s announcement marks a symbolic gesture or the start of a dramatic shift in U.S. nuclear policy.
