Trump orders US nuclear weapons testing to resume immediately after pause
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President Donald Trump announced that he has ordered the United States to “immediately” resume nuclear weapons testing, saying he has directed the War Department to match other nations’ programs. He described the move as a necessary step to preserve global equality.
“The United States has more Nuclear Weapons than any other country. This was accomplished during my First Term in office, including a complete upgrade and replacement of existing weapons,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday night.
“I HATE doing this because of the tremendous destructive power but I had no choice! Russia is second and China is a distant third but will be on par within 5 years,” Trump said. “Due to the testing programs of other countries, I have directed the War Department to begin testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis. This process will begin immediately.”
The announcement came just days after Trump warned Russian President Vladimir Putin that the United States was deploying a nuclear submarine “just off its coast.” The warning came after Russia’s latest missile tests.
TRUMP REPOSITIONS 2 NUCLEAR SUBMARINES AFTER ‘Highly Provocative’ Russian COMMENTS
President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin met in Anchorage, Alaska. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
Trump made the comments during a call with reporters aboard Air Force One on Monday morning and said the United States was not “playing games” with Putin.
“Russia said this week they tested a new missile that can travel more than 8,000 miles. Is that saber rattling to you? What is it?” a reporter asked.
PUTIN ENJOYED THE SUCCESSFUL TEST OF NUCLEAR-POWERED UNDERWATER TORPEDO
The Yars intercontinental ballistic missile was test-fired from the launch site in Plesetsk, in northwestern Russia, as part of Russia’s nuclear exercises. (Press Service of the Russian Ministry of Defense via AP, File)
“I know we have a nuclear submarine off their coast, the largest in the world. I mean, it doesn’t need to go 8,000 miles, and they’re not playing games with us. We’re not playing games with them,” Trump said.
“We test missiles all the time. But you know, we have a submarine, a nuclear submarine. We don’t need to go 8,000 miles. By the way, I don’t think it’s right for Putin to say this either. You must end the war. A war that should last a week is now very close.” [to be] fourth year. “This is what you should do instead of testing missiles,” he added.
TRUMP FREEZED PUTIN BECAUSE OF ‘INSUFFICIENT ACTION TOWARDS PEACE — FUTURE TALK UNCERTAIN
A Russian Iskander-K missile launched during a military exercise at a training range in Russia. (Press Service of the Ministry of Defense of Russia via AP)
Trump later hinted that he might impose additional sanctions on Russia, telling reporters simply, “You’ll find out.”
Russia’s defense ministry said Sunday that it had successfully tested a nuclear-powered Burevestnik cruise missile, claiming it could travel more than 8,000 miles and penetrate defense systems. Putin said Russia had taken action to deploy the weapon.
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Russia’s top general, Valery Gerasimov, told Putin that the missile traveled 8,700 miles and remained in the air for about 15 hours during its Oct. 21 test.
Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom and Reuters contributed to this report.
