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Markey Warns Trump: Resuming Nuclear Tests Could Trigger a Global Arms Race

Senator Edward Markey urged President Trump not to resume explosive nuclear testing, warning that a single U.S. detonation could prompt Russia and China to escalate their own programs. Trump recently said he directed the Pentagon to restart the testing process after a 33-year moratorium, prompting questions about which agency would conduct such tests. Markey demanded evidence by December 15 if other countries are carrying out secret hydronuclear tests and cautioned against confusing missile trials with nuclear explosive detonations.

05:30 AM, 11/26/2025Security
Markey Warns Trump: Resuming Nuclear Tests Could Trigger a Global Arms Race

By Timothy Gardner

Democratic Senator Edward Markey urged President Donald Trump on Tuesday not to resume explosive nuclear weapons testing, warning that even a single U.S. detonation could prompt Russia and China to escalate their own programs.

Late last month, Trump said on social media he had directed the Pentagon to immediately restart the process for testing nuclear weapons after a 33-year moratorium. The announcement created confusion because the National Nuclear Security Administration (part of the Energy Department) is the agency that would carry out any explosive nuclear tests.

"Even one small U.S. nuclear test would give Russia and China the green light to conduct many large nuclear tests that would be much more useful for the development of new nuclear weapons that could pose a threat to U.S. national security," Markey wrote in a letter to the president. Markey serves as co-chair of the Nuclear Weapons and Arms Control Working Group, which includes members from both the Senate and the House.

A longtime leader on non-proliferation in Congress, Markey previously urged the administration in 2020 not to resume explosive nuclear testing.

Trump has said the United States should "carry out the tests like other countries do." CIA Director John Ratcliffe posted on social media on November 3 that he agreed with the president's concern that other nations may be conducting tests.

Following Trump's remarks, Russian President Vladimir Putin directed senior officials to draft proposals for a potential nuclear test — a step Moscow has not taken since the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991.

In his letter, Markey also noted reports suggesting Russia and China may have conducted small, hard-to-detect hydronuclear tests, which would violate U.S. policy and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. "Reports of such tests from 2019 raise concerns, but they are unconfirmed," he wrote, adding that even if true they would not justify renewed U.S. explosive testing.

Markey requested that the president provide evidence by December 15 that Russia and China are conducting clandestine nuclear tests, and asked whether the administration might be conflating missile tests with nuclear explosive detonations.

The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

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