Is Pakistan actively testing nuclear weapons? Here's what Trump claims

US President Donald Trump has claimed that Pakistan is among countries conducting nuclear weapons tests, as he defended his decision to restart US testing after more than 30 years

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US President Donald Trump has claimed that Pakistan is among the countries actively conducting nuclear weapons tests.

 

In an interview on CBS News’ 60 Minutes aired on Sunday, Trump suggested that several countries, including Russia, China, North Korea, and Pakistan, are carrying out nuclear tests, while the US is not.

 

“Russia’s testing and China’s testing, but they don’t talk about it. We’re an open society. We’re different. We talk about it. We have to talk about it because otherwise you people are going to report. They don’t have reporters that are going to be writing about it,” Trump said.

 

He further added, “We’re going to test because they test and others test. And certainly North Korea’s been testing. Pakistan’s been testing.”

 

Why is Trump pushing to restart US nuclear testing?

 

Trump’s remarks came as he defended his plan to restart American nuclear weapons testing, a move that would end a 30-year moratorium. The announcement follows Russia’s reported trials of advanced nuclear-capable systems, such as the Poseidon underwater drone.

 

“You have to see how they work,” Trump said when asked about the decision. “The reason I’m saying testing is because Russia announced that they were going to be doing a test. If you notice, North Korea is testing constantly. Other countries are testing. We’re the only country that doesn’t test. And I don’t want to be the only country that doesn’t test.”

 

He further added, “We’re going to test nuclear weapons like other countries do."   

 

What did Trump say about the US nuclear arsenal?

 

Trump also claimed that the US has the world’s largest nuclear arsenal, saying he had discussed denuclearisation with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

 

“We have enough nuclear weapons to blow up the world 150 times,” Trump said. “Russia has a lot of nuclear weapons and China will have a lot. They have some. They have quite a bit.”

 

How has the US–Russia dynamic changed?

 

Last week, Trump formally announced plans to resume nuclear testing immediately, calling it an “appropriate” response to Russia’s recent actions. “They seem to all be nuclear testing,” he told reporters before boarding Air Force One. “We have more nuclear weapons than anybody. We don’t do testing... but with others doing testing, I think it’s appropriate that we do also.”

 

He also confirmed that preparations for the tests were underway but did not specify when or where they would take place.

 

When asked whether renewed US testing could heighten nuclear tensions, Trump said, “I think we have it pretty well locked up.”

 

Meanwhile, Russia has escalated tensions by terminating a key nuclear agreement with the US. Putin recently signed a law ending the plutonium disposal pact, which had required both nations to destroy 34 tonnes of weapons-grade plutonium no longer needed for military use.

 

(With agency inputs)