Trump’s Nuclear Test Order: A Response to Russia’s Burevestnik Missile?

Donald Trump’s directive to resume U.S. nuclear testing comes directly after Russia tested its new nuclear-powered cruise missile, Burevestnik, and a nuclear-capable underwater drone. While the timing suggests a link, Trump publicly cited different reasons for his decision.
The former president claimed in a television interview that Russia and China were conducting secret, underground tests. “Russia’s testing, and China’s testing, but they don’t talk about it,” he alleged, adding that the U.S. would not be “the only country that doesn’t test.”
China’s foreign ministry rejected this accusation, stating that Beijing has always “upheld a self-defence nuclear strategy” and has “abided by its commitment to suspend nuclear testing.”
In a social media post announcing the order, Trump claimed the U.S. nuclear arsenal was fully renovated during his first term. He instructed the “Department of War” to begin testing “on an equal basis,” a move he claimed he “hated” but was necessary.
The order has sparked confusion over whether the U.S. will conduct its first nuclear explosion since 1992. Trump also named North Korea and Pakistan as countries conducting tests, a claim that is widely disputed.