Trump Says U.S. Will Begin Testing Nuclear Weapons
President says he has instructed the Pentagon to test ‘on an equal basis’ with Russia and China
The Wall Street Journal Updated Oct. 30, 2025
WASHINGTON—President Trump said that he has ordered the Pentagon to “start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis” with Russia and China.
But it remained unclear whether Trump was referring to the testing of nuclear warheads or the missiles and other delivery systems that carry them.
“Because of other countries testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis,” Trump wrote on social media. “That process will begin immediately.”
Trump’s post came shortly before a meeting in South Korea with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Later, in comments to reporters during his return flight to the U.S., Trump said the administration plans to issue an announcement with more detail on the tests. He declined to explain the reason for his move but said it didn’t relate to China.
“It had to do with others,” he said, without specifying any countries. “They seem to all be nuclear testing.”
Asked if he thought the world is entering a more risky nuclear environment, he said, “I don’t think so.” The president added that he would “like to see a denuclearization.”
The U.S. last conducted a nuclear-weapons test in 1992 and has joined Russia and China in observing a decadeslong moratorium on underground nuclear blasts.
It wasn’t immediately clear what prompted his post, though Russian President Vladimir Putin said this week that Russia has tested a new type of nuclear-powered cruise missile and a nuclear-powered underwater drone.
In his social-media message, Trump said the U.S. has more nuclear weapons than any other country and took credit for upgrading the U.S. nuclear arsenal during his first term. “Because of the tremendous destructive power, I HATED to do it, but had no choice! Russia is second, and China is a distant third, but will be even within 5 years,” he wrote, explaining why he is calling for tests.
The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for additional details. Some experts questioned whether Trump might have been referring to the flight tests of missiles that carry nuclear warheads rather than the nuclear explosive.
Russia and China aren’t carrying out underground nuclear tests, though they are testing missiles and other delivery systems. North Korea conducts nuclear tests, but hasn’t done so since 2017.
The U.S. Energy Department has the responsibility for maintaining the reliability of nuclear weapons while the Pentagon develops the weapons that carry them.
The U.S. periodically tests unarmed intercontinental ballistic missiles such as the Minuteman III to assure their reliability.
For decades, Russia and China have observed a moratorium on underground nuclear tests, along with the U.S. And the U.S. has an extensive program to ensure the reliability of its nuclear arsenal through small nuclear experiments and computer simulations that former officials and many experts say makes testing unnecessary.
The U.S. has conducted more than 1,000 nuclear tests. China has carried out 45 nuclear tests, the last of which was in 1996.
Resuming nuclear testing could also work to the disadvantage of the U.S. since the American weapons complex has carried out many more nuclear tests than China and, thus, has more data to draw on.
“I don’t think testing is necessary to assure reliability of the U.S. nuclear arsenal,” said Gary Samore, who served as the top expert on weapons of mass destruction for former President Bill Clinton‘s National Security Council. “It would be a gift to Russia and China, which are developing new types of nuclear weapons and would benefit from the resumption of testing.”
The U.S. signed the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, which bans underground tests, in 1996, though the U.S. has never ratified the accord.
The directors of the U.S. nuclear laboratories have regularly certified the reliability of the arsenal based on advanced simulation and experiments. It could take months for the U.S. to prepare and carry out a nuclear test, if the order were given to do so.
Like Russia and other major powers, China is observing the moratorium on nuclear tests. But Beijing has resisted the effort to be drawn into arms-control agreements that would limit its arsenal or provide for inspections.
Following Trump’s remarks, a spokesman for China’s foreign minister said Beijing urges the U.S. “to earnestly abide” by the global nuclear-test ban.
Write to Michael R. Gordon at michael.gordon@wsj.com and Alex Leary at alex.leary@wsj.com
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Appeared in the October 30, 2025, print edition as 'Trump Says U.S. Will Test Nuclear Weapons'.