AI-Summary – News For Tomorrow
A new Cold War atmosphere is emerging as Trump orders the Department of War to explore resuming nuclear weapons testing, citing other countries’ programs. Experts question the pronouncement, as the US hasn’t tested in decades, and Russia, the US, and China are already investing heavily in new nuclear delivery systems. Resuming testing carries diplomatic risks, potentially isolating the US and encouraging other nations like China to advance their nuclear capabilities. Technically, preparing for safe testing would take years, and current component testing provides ample knowledge. Critics argue that restarting testing is strategically unsound for the US.
News summary provided by Gemini AI.
A ghost of the Cold War is rising between the world’s superpowers, just in time for Halloween.
In the wake of Russian President Vladimir Putin bragging about his country testing both a nuclear-powered torpedo and a new cruise missile, the president of the United States, Donald Trump, has fired back. In a lengthy post on his Truth Social platform, Trump announced, “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.”
Now, nuclear watchdogs worldwide are wondering what might come of Trump’s pronouncement — and what he even means since the US hasn’t conducted a nuclear weapons test in decades.
What’s more, Jon Wolfsthal, who advised both Joe Biden and Barack Obama on nuclear matters, notes other nations are already conducting similar tests – along with the US. “Russia, the United States, China are all investing tens of billions of dollars on new nuclear delivery platforms – missiles, bombers, submarines,” Wolfsthal said. “We have returned to the arms race dynamics of the Cold War where each side believes nuclear weapons are important.”
Still, if Trump truly wants to resume nuclear weapons testing, analysts say the complications are deep and wide. For starters, almost every nuclear-capable country in the world has voluntarily agreed to avoid such tests for decades. Russia ran its last test in 1990, the US in 1992 and China in 1996. North Korea is the only nation to conduct nuclear blasts this century, and that has contributed to Pyongyang’s status as an international pariah.
Beyond the diplomatic risk of standing up a fresh set of tests in the US, there are technical challenges. Federal studies have shown staging such a test safely would likely require several years of preparation, and even then, it might yield little useful information. The US routinely tests nuclear weapons components so thoroughly that America is widely seen as holding a treasure trove of nuclear knowledge unmatched by any other country.
Critics say if Trump ushers in a new era of testing, that will only open the door for any other nation with nuclear dreams to start catching up.
“The country that would benefit the most would be China,” Bunn said.
“It makes no sense from a strategic point of view for the United States,” said former Democratic congressman John Tierney, who now heads the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation.
