In a move that has sent shockwaves through the international community, U.S. President Donald Trump has announced the resumption of nuclear weapons testing, ending a moratorium that has been in place since 1992. The decision, first revealed on October 30, 2025, via Trump’s Truth Social account, was later reiterated ahead of a high-profile meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. Trump declared that the United States would restart nuclear tests “on an equal basis” with other nuclear-armed states, claiming that Russia, China, North Korea, and Pakistan were all engaged in “secret underground testing.”
According to reporting from The Manila Times, Trump’s assertion is not supported by the facts. Since the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) was adopted in 1996, only North Korea has conducted nuclear tests, with its most recent detonation in September 2017. China’s last test was in July 1996, after which it announced a moratorium. Russia’s last test dates back to 1990, and both India and Pakistan have refrained from testing since their tit-for-tat detonations in 1998. The United States itself has not conducted a full-scale nuclear explosion since 1992, as noted by The Atlantic.
Despite this reality, Trump’s announcement has been met with both domestic and international condemnation. Critics argue that the move risks unraveling decades of painstaking non-proliferation progress and could trigger a new global nuclear arms race. Senior Democrat Jack Reed warned, “Restarting nuclear testing risks unraveling decades of painstaking non-proliferation progress and could trigger a new global nuclear arms competition.” Supporters, however, such as Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Jim Risch, have praised the decision as a “reasonable” response to what they perceive as the evolving nuclear posture of America’s adversaries, particularly Moscow and Beijing.
The CTBT, adopted by the United Nations in 1996, was designed to ban all nuclear explosions, whether underground, underwater, or atmospheric. To date, 187 countries have signed the treaty and 185 have ratified it, making it one of the world’s most widely supported non-proliferation instruments. Yet, the treaty has not entered into legal force because eight key states—including the United States, China, Iran, Israel, Egypt, India, Pakistan, and North Korea—have not ratified it. The CTBT established an International Monitoring System (IMS) of 337 stations worldwide, capable of detecting even the smallest nuclear explosions. This system has effectively identified all of North Korea’s nuclear tests, demonstrating the treaty’s practical value even in the absence of full legal force.
The consequences of Trump’s decision go far beyond the act of testing itself. As The Atlantic points out, the real danger lies in the potential for other nuclear-armed states to follow suit. Russia has already stated it “would respond in kind” to nuclear testing by any country. China, for its part, called for restraint and emphasized its “no first use” policy, while also noting that it adheres to its nuclear testing moratorium—but stopped short of committing to maintain that stance if others resume testing. The risk of a renewed arms race is not limited to the major powers. India and Pakistan, both of whom last tested nuclear weapons in 1998, could be drawn into a new cycle of escalation. The two countries have a history of mistrust, territorial disputes, and rapid military mobilization, making the prospect of renewed testing particularly alarming in South Asia.
Historically, nuclear testing has come at a tremendous human and environmental cost. The first nuclear explosion—the 1945 Trinity Test in New Mexico—ushered in the atomic era, and subsequent decades saw hundreds of tests conducted in deserts, islands, and oceans. These tests left a legacy of radioactive contamination, environmental devastation, and long-term health effects for local populations. Public pressure against testing led to the 1963 Partial Test Ban Treaty, which banned atmospheric, underwater, and outer-space tests but allowed underground tests to continue. It was not until the end of the Cold War that a broader global consensus emerged to end all nuclear explosions, culminating in the CTBT.
Trump’s decision marks a significant departure from this legacy of restraint. During his presidency, he has taken several steps that critics say undermine international peace and security. According to IRNA, Trump renamed the Ministry of Defense to the Ministry of War, tested the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile, and supported increased foreign military sales, particularly to the Arab world. U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegsett stated on November 7, 2025, that under Trump, the United States reached its highest level of foreign military sales, highlighting the administration’s prioritization of arms industry interests. Hegsett remarked, “Thanks to President Trump’s efforts, we have reached our highest level of foreign military sales. The president is signing a series of contracts to bring in huge cash for American manufacturers.”
Trump has also been criticized for supporting Israel’s actions in Gaza, encouraging Ukraine to continue its war effort, and inciting Israel to consider military action against Iran. While he has attempted to present himself as a “President of Peace” through symbolic actions such as hosting a Caucasus peace conference, mediating between Thailand and Cambodia, and proposing a peace plan for Gaza, these efforts have been widely dismissed as public relations stunts. The Sharm el-Sheikh summit in 2025, for example, was used by Trump to promote his peace credentials, but according to IRNA, it failed to produce a lasting settlement and instead allowed Israel to violate ceasefire agreements in Gaza.
The risks of resuming nuclear testing are not only strategic but deeply humanitarian. As The Atlantic notes, nuclear weapons are often discussed in abstract terms—megaton yields, delivery systems, strategic doctrines—but their true impact is devastatingly human. Survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, victims of atmospheric testing in the Pacific, and residents of test sites like Semipalatinsk and Nevada serve as grim reminders of the generational suffering caused by nuclear detonations. In the event of a future nuclear exchange, immediate casualties would be only the beginning; long-term cancers, genetic mutations, economic collapse, forced migrations, and the breakdown of public services would haunt societies for decades. A nuclear winter scenario could devastate global agriculture, plunging millions into starvation.
Despite these dangers, Trump’s administration argues that resuming tests is necessary to keep pace with adversaries and ensure the credibility of the U.S. nuclear deterrent. Yet, as experts and diplomats have pointed out, the decision risks undoing decades of progress in nuclear arms control and could set off a dangerous cycle of escalation. The world stands at a crossroads: one path leads back to the darkest chapters of the 20th century, while the other offers the possibility of renewed diplomacy and strengthened international norms against nuclear testing.
As the international community grapples with the implications of Trump’s announcement, the stakes could not be higher. The decision to resume nuclear testing is not merely a matter of national policy—it is a test of global leadership, responsibility, and the collective will to prevent the catastrophic consequences of nuclear brinkmanship from becoming a reality once again.
